Om Prakash Rajbhar, the BJP’s disgruntled ally in Uttar Pradesh, has predicted that the party would fare poorly in the State, 13 constituencies of which voted in the last phase of the Lok Sabha election on Sunday.
Mr. Rajbhar, chief of the Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party, said the Gathbandhan of the SP and the BSP would win a “large number of seats” in the State.
“The BJP is suffering heavy losses,” he told the media after casting his vote in Ballia, adding that the alliance would be dominant in Purvanchal.
Mr. Rajbhar, who has been on a warpath with the BJP after it denied him a ticket on his own symbol, said the party was “responsible” for its own losses as it did not take its ally along. Mr. Rajbhar is a Cabinet Minister in the Yogi Adityanath government.
He ssaid the BJP would lose primarily due to his rebellion.
“By not giving us one seat the BJP has damaged itself on 50,” said Mr. Rajbhar, who had been demanding the Ghosi seat for himself.
The BJP, however, wanted him to contest on its symbol.
His party fielded over 40 candidates in the election, most of them from the OBC community, including his own caste Rajbhars, and even supported the Congress on some seats.
Going solo
Mr. Rajbhar had decided to go solo after months of acrimony with the BJP over his demand for sub-categorisation of the OBC quota.
He said he would continue to build his party with “full force” for the 2022 Assembly elections in the State.