Snubbed by ally BJP, SBSP to go solo in Bihar polls

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Snubbed by ally BJP, SBSP to go solo in Bihar polls

LUCKNOWA: BJP ally Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party (SBSP) Tuesday announced it would contest Bihar polls on its own. The announcement came hours after BJP sidelined SBSP to declare its seat-sharing arrangement with its Bihar allies — JDU, LJP (RV), RLM, and HAM.SBSP also released its list of 20 star campaigners, including party chief Om Prakash Rajbhar and his sons Arvind and Arun. Arvind, who is also the party’s national general secretary, will camp in Bihar and oversee the party’s poll work.SBSP national general secretary Shashi Bhushan Singh said the party is likely to announce its first list of candidates on Wednesday.SBSP sources said OP Rajbhar was seeking 10-12 seats from BJP.

These were the seats where the party’s core vote base of Rajbhar, Bhar, and Rajvanshi communities have a sizable presence. Sources said Rajbhar has now narrowed down his demand to five seats — Rajpur (Buxar), Dhaka (East Champaran), Nalanda, Arwal and Sasaram (Rohtas).SBSP’s organisational strength in Bihar is marginal, but the party hopes to attract non-Yadav OBC and Rajbhar voters in eastern districts bordering UP.

Known for flexing muscles while being a part of alliance in the past, Rajbhar wants to project himself as a key political player in the non-Yadav OBC matrix. A senior SBSP functionary said by going solo in Bihar, Rajbhar aims to project SBSP as a national OBC-centric party rather than just a regional ally of BJP, primarily in UP.

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