Close on the heels of the Mulayam Singh’s daughter -in law Aparna Yadav meeting Chief Minister Adityanath, senior Samajwadi party leader Shivpal Yadav called on the Chief Minister on Wednesday.
His son Aditya Yadav also accompanied his father. Earlier Shivpal Yadav had tweeted a message congratulating the Chief Minister Adityanath, the day he took oath of office. This was the first meeting of the Chief Minister with the leader of an opposition party after the BJP announced the loan waiver for the farmers on Tuesday.
Shivpal Yadav is the first senior SP leader to have met the Chief Minister after Adityanath took oath of office on March 19.
Shivpal Yadav had also met the State assembly Speaker Hridya Naryan Dikshit on Tuesday. Shivp0al had also congratulated the two Deputy Chief Ministers Keshav Prasad Maurya and Dinesh Sharma when they had taken oath of office.
After meeting the Chief Minister Shivpal Yadav described his meeting with Adityanath as the Rscourtesy call’. The Samajwadi leaders however say Rsthere is more to it than what meets the eye’’. Shivpal Yadav had announced in January that he will float a new political party after the assembly elections.
Sources close to Shivpal Yadav said he is working for the already announced goal. Sources said Shivpal Yadav had even before the assembly elections had concluded that he and his son have no future in the Samajwadi party led by his nephew Akhilesh Yadav.
Sources said Shivpal Yadav is now disillusioned with his elder brother Mulayam Singh Yadav and lost hopes that he would ever make decisive political move for his political rehabilitation. A senior SP leader said ‘Mulayam Singh Yadav is ‘very sad’ over the turn of events in the party ever since he was removed from the post of national president on January 1, he is still ambivalent and yet to make a firm move indicating his future course of political action’. Shivpal Yadav is no longer ready for further wait and watch and wants decisive action from Mulayam Singh Yadav and failing to get response he made an independent move to meet the Chief Minister Adityanath.
“There may be speculation that Shivpal may join the BJP or float his own political party there is total unanimity in the Akhilesh Yadav camp that he has no future in the Samajwadi party so earlier the better he must find a new political home for himself’’, said a SP leader.
Sources said it appears highly unlikely that BJP would like to accommodate Shivpal Yadav at this juncture as the Chief Minister has already ordered a judicial probe into alleged financial irregularities in Gomti river front project of Rs1,500 crore.
Shivpal Yadav was the irrigation minister and this department is executing the project. At the same time sources said BJP needs a Yadav leader of stature who can cut into the vote bank of the Samajwadi party in its core area of West UP.
Sources said BJP wants to complete this operation before 2019 lok Sabha elections for creating wider Hindu vote bank which includes all castes and no community feels alienated from the consolidation of Hindu vote bank.