UP polls: RLD likely to contest 30-35 seats as part of SP-led alliance, say sources

Amid speculation over Jayant Chaudhary's meeting with Akhilesh Yadav, sources told Republic TV that Rashtriya Lok Dal is likely to be allocated 30-35 seats for the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls. While SP had already expressed its intent to tie up with RLD earlier, the final decision pertaining to seat-sharing is yet to be taken. In the 2017 UP election, RLD contested 277 seats but managed to win from only the Chhaprauli constituency. 

When it was a part of an alliance with SP and BSP in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, RLD lost all seats which it contested- Baghpat, Mathura and Muzaffarnagar. While RLD founder Ajit Singh lost to BJP's Sanjeev Balyan in Muzaffarnagar, his son Jayant Chaudhary suffered defeat at the hands of BJP MP Satyapal Singh. After Singh's demise on May 6 owing to COVID-19, Chaudhary was elected as the new president of the party. 

Uttar Pradesh polls

In the 2017 Uttar Pradesh Assembly election, BJP had won a whopping 312 seats in the 403-member House, whereas BSP could win only 19 seats. On the other hand, the SP-Congress alliance failed to bear fruit as it could win in only 54 constituencies. While this was seen as a mandate for PM Modi as BJP had not declared any CM candidate, Gorakhpur MP Yogi Adityanath was a surprise pick for the post. Though some BJP leaders made conflicting statements over Adityanath's future as the Chief Minister, PM Modi put rest to all speculations by lauding UP's governance model during his successive visits to the state.

While Akhilesh Yadav has ruled out any alliance with Congress and BSP, he has hinted at allying with his uncle Shivpal Yadav. So far, SP has announced a tie-up with Mahan Dal. Speaking exclusively to Republic TV on November 14, he exuded confidence in SP winning 400 seats in the UP polls. Until now, neither Yadav nor Adityanath has taken a call on contesting the Assembly election. 

Contending that the Centre decided to roll back the farm laws on November 19 owing to the support garnered by Samajwadi Party in its UP election campaign, Akhilesh Yadav opined, "And I can say that the support garnered by SP and the manner in which the people of Purvanchal including farmers hit the streets, it shook not just Lucknow but also Delhi. Remember a decision (demonetisation) was taken before the election. Has the economy improved due to it? That decision was wrong too."