INSIDE STORY OF SP-BSP ALLIANCE

Even before the results were out, Samajwadi Party leaders in Lucknow were predicting a win in both Gorakhpur and Phulpur byelections. But given the BJP’s winning streak in the Northeast, few thought they would lose the polls in their own backyard. But Akhilesh Yadav took these elections seriously. He deputed his trusted men, including MLC Udaiveer Singh and youth leader Arvind Singh Gope, in Gorakhpur. More importantly, he patched up with Mayawati. The Bahujan Samaj Party and the SP had been working together on the floor of the House to take on the BJP, especially on its encounter politics. Interestingly, it was BSP leader Lalji Verma in the Vidhan Sabha who first suggested that the two get together in the coming Rajya Sabha elections, where the SP had surplus votes and the BSP was running short. The proposal was first discussed with the SP Leader of Opposition, Ram Govind Chaudhury, who then took it to Akhilesh. The SP chief then proposed a barter deal in the Lok Sabha bypolls, which was immediately accepted by the BSP. “BSP chief Mayawati did not even convey to us that she was going to support our candidates in Phuplur and Gorakhpur, but instead made the announcement to the press,” said an SP leader. And that is how the first seeds of a winning alliance were sown.