UP: Ahead of Lok Sabha Polls, SP-Apna Dal (Kamerawadi) Alliance Crumbles

Lucknow: In what is being seen as a jolt to the Samajwadi Party (SP), the Apna Dal (Kamerawadi), led by Krishna Patel, has announced that it will field its candidates in Phulpur, Mirzapur, and Kaushambhi for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections in Uttar Pradesh.

Soon after the Apna Dal (K) move, the SP, too, released a list of candidates for six Lok Sabha seats, including Mirzapur on which the Apna Dal (K) has laid claim, causing speculation all is not well in the Samajwadi Party-led INDIA bloc.

"A meeting of the Apna Dal (Kamerawadi) central executive committee was held under the chairmanship of the national president Krishna Patel. The central executive committee decided to contest three seats - Phulpur, Mirzapur, and Kaushambi - as part of the INDIA bloc, in Uttar Pradesh,” a press release issued by the central office secretary Ram Sanehi Patel stated.

Apna Dal (K) President Krishna Patel, who is Pallavi Patel’s (an SP MLA) mother, said that her party would remain a member of the INDIA bloc.

"We are part of the INDIA bloc. We have been allies with Akhileshji since the Vidhan Sabha polls (of 2022). Under the alliance, we declare three seats today – Phoolpur, Mirzapur and Kaushambi.”

She added, “We had a conversation about these three seats. For the past month, I have been trying to talk to them (the SP), but it has not happened.”

In response, senior SP leaders said without any discussion with top leadership, the Apna Dal (K) leadership announced its candidates on three seats to mount pressure on the Samajwadi Party. 

"They have not declared or discussed who the candidate would be on three seats but only declared they would contest these three seats. It’s a pressure tactic," Rajendra Chaudhary, SP leader said. 

The Apna Dal (Kamerawadi) leader Pallavi Patel, was elected MLA from Sirathu, on a Samajwadi Party symbol. She had defeated the sitting Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya. The SP, a key constituent of the INDIA bloc called the announcement unilateral.

Akhilesh Yadav, while addressing a press conference held in Lucknow on Thursday, said: “We had an alliance with Apna Dal (Kameravadi) in 2022 which has now been broken.”

Earlier, Pallavi Patel raised, a stir in the Rajya Sabha polling camp by declaring she would not cast a ballot, citing the SP leadership's alleged disregard for Pichda, Dalit, Alpasankhyak (PDA) and grassroots activists in the candidate selection process. Since then, her tone has remained rebellious, and she has expressed interest in leaving the SP and going solo for the Lok Sabha polls. 

Notably, months after differences over seat sharing, INDIA bloc partners Samajwadi Party and Congress tie-up for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls in Uttar Pradesh, with the state's main Opposition party leaving 17 out of the 80 seats for the grand old party.

These 17 seats include Raebareli, Amethi, Kanpur, Fatehpur Sikri, Bansgaon, Saharanpur, Prayagraj (previously known as Allahabad), Maharajganj, Varanasi, Amroha, Jhansi, Bulandshahr, Ghaziabad, Mathura, Sitapur, Barabanki and Deoria.

The Lok Sabha elections in Uttar Pradesh will be held in all seven phases starting from April 19 to June 1. 

All of these 80 seats will go for election on Apr 19, Apr 26, May 7, May 13, May 20, May 25 and June 1. The state has around 14,40,61,892 eligible voters and the results will be declared on June 4.