Om Prakash Rajbhar says had quit Yogi Adityanath cabinet on April 13, BJP misusing party name, flag in polls: Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party chief Om Prakash Rajbhar on Monday asserted that he had stepped down as a cabinet minister from Yogi Adityanath-led BJP government in Uttar Pradesh. He claimed that he submitted his resignation on April 13, 2019, however, the ruling party is yet to accept or reject his resignation. Addressing the media, Rajbhar said that he had tendered his resignation over the seat-sharing agreement and has nothing to do with the government now. Meanwhile, he also filed a complaint with the Election Commission against the saffron party for not accepting his resignation.
He said that he filed the complaint after the party was allegedly using his party’s flag and his name in the ongoing elections. He alleged that the SBSP party flag was used during a roadshow held by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Rajbhar has always remained a vocal critique of the BJP, its ally in Uttar Pradesh.
He claimed that the saffron party had asked him to contest with their party flag, but he denied it. He added that the party also denied his request that his party would contest from 1 seat.
Reports said that Rajbhar wanted his son, Arvind Rajbhar, to contest from Ghosi constituency on the SBSP ticket, however, the BJP fielded sitting MP Harinarayan Rajbhar in the polls as Om denied to contest his son on the BJP ticket. On April 19, 2019, the SBSP had announced candidates on 39 seats, including Varanasi, Lucknow and Gorakhpur.
The alliance between the BJP and SBSP came into play before the 2017 Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh. The differences between the two parties surfaced soon after the alliance was formed and Om Prakash had even met BJP national president Amit Shah and Yogi Adityanath to sort out the issues between the parties.
