LUCKNOW: Crisis is brewing in BSP in the run-up to the Rajya Sabha elections in the state with five MLAs alleging on Wednesday that their signatures were forged on the nomination papers of party candidate Ramji Gautam. In the likelihood of the five switching parties at some point in the near future, the BSP won the first round as Gautam’s papers were finally accepted on Wednesday evening. He will also sail through now since there won’t be elections as there are only 10 candidates for 10 seats.
During scrutiny of papers on Wednesday, five MLAs - Aslam Raini, Aslam Chaudhary, Muztaba Siddiqui, Hakim Lal Bind and Hargovind Bhargava approached the Vidhan Sabha Secretariat and challenged two of the three sets of documents filed by Gautam, claiming that they had not signed them. Party sources reported that four of these, excluding Bhargava, submitted affidavits to bolster their claim.
The party, led by Lalji Verma who is leader of BSP legislative assembly and national general secretary SC Mishra, submitted counter-affidavits saying that all five were present during the nomination for which there are photographs to prove the point.
During the day, another BSP MLA Sushma Patel reportedly met Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav along with her husband. “There is nothing to say that I cannot meet someone from another party. However, I will not disclose what we discussed,” she said.
Meanwhile, the other members who claimed that they had not supported Gautam’s candidature, said that they had felt ignored by the party. Aslam Raini, who defied party orders to attend the government’s special session on Mahatma Gandhi’s 150th birth anniversary in 2019 said that when he was tested Covid positive recently, it was chief minister Yogi Adityanath who helped him get hospital admission and other help. “SP chief Akhilesh Yadav also called me to inquire about my health. I am grateful to both of them. Nobody from BSP called,” he said.
Siddiqui added that MLAs were being ignored by the party top brass. “I have been in BSP for 25 years but nobody cares about us. The coordinators do not even call us for meetings,” he said.
While Gautam’s entry into the Rajya Sabha is clear, the rebellion by the five MLA spells trouble for the party with ongoing elections in Bihar and byelections to seven seats coming up next month. BSP has 18 members in the assembly of which one, Mukhtar Ansari, is in jail. Five rebelled on Wednesday while sources say there may be at least one more disgruntled element in the party.
“The objection by the five was never going to hold back Gautam’s nomination. His disqualification would only take place if his information or signature was incorrect. However, by their open allegations, the MLAs have challenged the party leadership. This will send a terrible message to party workers and supporters even as the party is facing a huge challenge in the 2022 assembly polls,” said a senior party member.