Two days before elections results would be announced voices of dissent have started emanating from Samajwadi Party with a cabinet minister Ravidas Mehrorta questioning alliance with Congress while senior party leader Md Azam Khan saying that Mulayam’s second wife Sadhna Gupta should not have given any statement. Khan even said if SP loses poll Akhilesh Yadav should not be blamed for this.
The exit polls have shown that Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance will come second to Bharatiya Janata party while the BSP will be third.
“The alliance with Congress was a big mistake. The Samajwadi Party has not gained a bit. It is Congress which stands benefited from SP,” Ravidas Mehrotra, a cabinet rank minister in Akhilesh Yadav government said.
To justify his point he said that only that any alliance could be successful if there is vote transfer. In case of SP-Congress alliance the SP was able to transfer its votes to Congress candidates but vice-versa did not happen. The Congress number will swell at the expense of Samajwadi Party, he said.
“I again reiterate that we should not have gone with the alliance,” he said.
Mehrotra has a reason to feel annoyed. He has contested this election election from lucknow Central on SP ticket. The Congress had also fielded Maroof Khan from this constituency. There is a murmur in Mehrotra camp that Vidhayak ji might lose because of Congress candidate.
However, the Muslim mascot of the party Md Azam Khan made a veil attack on Sadhna Gupta, the second wife of Mulayam Singh Yadav and said that she should not have given a statement before last phase of election.
“I am confident that Samajwadi Party-Congress will form next government in UP. If SP fails to make through Akhilesh should not be blamed for the defeat. There are other reasons too,” he said and added: “I still feel SP-Congress alliance will form the next government.”
A couple of days back Sadhna Gupta had told a private news channel that Akhilesh was very arrogant and should not have dis-respected Mulayam Singh Yadav.
Khan did not elaborate on Sadhna Gupta;s statement but said the timing of the statement was wrong.