Sp may form grand alliance for upcoming 2017 polls

Bihar election result has given a ray of hope for the non-BJP political parties to clobber a similar 'Mahagathbandhan' with Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav did not ruling out possibility of such grand alliance in 2017 assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh.

“Such an alliance is a possibility in UP. If all like-minded parties join hands we can have a similar alliance in this state,” Yadav told reporters in Sant Kabir Nagar on Sunday where he had gone to attend a marriage function.

He said that still there are around 15 months left before UP will go to polls and it is too early to comment anything on the Grand Alliance (GA). “But yes, we should join hands to defeat the communal forces”, Yadav, who is also state president of the party said.

The statement came a day after BJP spokesman Vijay Bahadur Pathak had said that verdict like Bihar was possible in UP only if two arch rivals BSP and SP join hands. When the same question was thrown at Chief Minister he did not reply but said that the time will tell (what will happen).

He said people of Bihar have voted for development. Similar verdict people have given to Samajwadi party in Panchayat election. They (people) negated others and voted for SP-supported candidates because our government talks about development.

“We will go to people in 2017 elections with report card which is full of achievements. We will talk about development work we have carried out and people will definitely like this,” he said.

Earlier, SP general secretary and UP minister Shivpal Singh Yadav too has given a positive signal on the proposed grand alliance in UP. "We are open to all strategy to counter communal forces," he said.

Yadav’s statement finds favourable response from other parties as  lalu Prasad's  Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) sending feelers to the ruling Samajwadi Party for a grand alliance in the 2017 Assembly polls.

UP RJD president Ashok Singh said that such a partnership between SP and RJD will fructify soon. "lalu ji will come to UP and talk to the SP leaders along with other secular political outfit for making a grand alliance to defeat the communal  BJP," he told The Pioneer here on Sunday.

Singh said that currently lalu Prasad is busy with the Chhat festival and the oath ceremony of the Nitish Kumar government. "After November 20, he would start his mission UP," he said while confirming that the RDJ president and his family would be attending the 76th birthday function of SP president Mulayam Singh Yadav at Saifai on November 21.

“Bihar outcomes proved that lalu ji has acceptability among the people. We are going to turn lalu magic into a wave against BJP throughout the nation. It will start from UP,” Singh said.

Singh said that to wipe up anti-Modi sentiments RJD will hold agitations across Uttar Pradesh in which ministers from Bihar will also take part. “We have to create an anti-BJP environment in UP which in turn will help SP,” he said.

Asked whether RJD will contest election in UP he said that our paramount importance is to ensure there is no division of votes in UP. RJD contests or not it is not important. What is important that there should not be division among anti-BJP votes, he said.

Similarly, Congress has also started preparing strategies for the 2017 polls. The leaders say that the party is open to a grand alliance to defeat the BJP in UP like in Bihar. The UP Congress has called a meeting of the senior party leaders in Greater Noida on November 21 to discuss the Mission 2017.

UP Congress vice-president and media chairman Satyadev Tripathi said that the meeting would be attended by former central ministers and senior leaders.