Shivpal and Rajbhar: two UP leaders who had hopes dashed to the ground

Lucknow.June 07(HS)Two political leaders belonging to two different parties had roared like lions before the general elections in Uttar Pradesh. But they mewed like cats after  they were over and results were announced.

One of them, Om Prakash Rajbhar, who was an ally of the ruling BJP and who had decided to go against its wishes, was so sure of himself and his party that he fielded even a candidate against Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Varanasi.

This head of Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party had also named candidates for  30 other constituencies.He had mercifully left only 50 seats.

Rajbhar had allied with the BJP before the general elections in 2014 and had not won any seat.In the subsequent Assembly elections,however, he had not drawn a blank.

Partly because of success in Vidhan Sabha polls he made one demand after another from the Yogi government of which he was a part.His major demand was appointment of a committee to suggest quota within quota for the backward castes after studying its impact on different backward castes.

Yogi who did not want  to annoy a backward leader appointed such a committee which has submitted its report which is being studied.

That raised his appetite and he came out with more demands.Some of these were also accepted.Came elections and  his voice became louder.This time for more seats.The BJP was ready to leave one for him but on the condition that the candidate for that seat would fight on BJP symbol.

It was unacceptable to him.He made much hue and cry.But it was not the end. Rajbhar threatened to leave the alliance and carried this threat  by setting candidates against the BJP nominees.

The results indicated that he was overconfident and far away from ground realities.Most of his candidates lost security deposits.None could make the grade.

Another leader,Shivpal Singh Yadav,who had  separated from the parent organisation and formed his own party,Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party (Lohia), met the same fate.He had also bragged and said much about the success of his outfit.

He contested 31 seats including one,Firozabad,where he was himself a candidate.He got only nine per cent votes in this constituency.All other seats were lost to rivals.

The BJP candidate Chandrasen Jadon secured 46 per cent votes  in this constituency, pushing him to third position.

Shivpal  has at least one satisfaction: son of Ram Gopal Yadav, whom he considered enemy number one and who was “instrumental” in creating bad blood between him and SP president Akhilesh Yadav was defeated.He got only three per cent less votes than the winning BJP candidate. Therefore there was a chance of his victory in absence of Shivpal ( his total exceeds winning total  by adding his vote-share)

He,however, had not mattered much in other constituencies which is apparent from official figures.”Others” which included his party and that of Rajbhar got together only 4.18 per cent of the valid votes polled. It indicated that he had not contributed much to the defeat of alliance candidates.