Lucknow (The Hawk): The Bhim Army, led by Chandra Shekhar Aazad, is about to join the Samajwadi Party-Rashtriya Lok Dal coalition as a new member.
Chandra Shekhar has been promoting the SP-RLD candidates in Khatauli and Rampur even though there hasn't been any official announcement of a partnership with the Bhim Army.
Due to the BSP's absence from the byelections, his involvement in the campaign is anticipated to win over Dalit voters to the SP-RLD.
Akhilesh Yadav and Chandra Shekhar were reportedly brought together by RLD leader Jayant Chaudhary, who also assisted the two leaders in resolving their disputes.
As you may remember, the intended coalition between the SP and Bhim Army broke down on the eve of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections earlier this year because of "misunderstandings" between Akhilesh and Chandra Shekhar.
In Rampur on Wednesday, Chandrashekhar met SP veteran Azam Khan to offer his support to the party's SP candidate running in the Assembly byelection. Chandrashekhar was included in Time magazine's annual list of "100 young leaders who are influencing the future."
He has already been involved in the Khatauli Assembly by-election campaign with Jayant Chaudhary.
According to sources in the SP, the RLD leader and Chandrashekhar have held numerous rounds of discussions during which they have gone into great detail about how they will cooperate to hold the by-elections.
The leadership of the SP and RLD is closely observing the influence Chandra Shekhar Aazad will have on the byelections in Khatauli and Rampur.
According to SP insiders, Chandra Shekhar's inclusion in the SP-RLD coalition is anticipated to have a good effect on Uttar Pradesh's overall political landscape.
A senior party leader stated that Chandra Shekhar "may be projected as an alternative to the BSP" because of his significant popularity among Dalits in western UP.
Chandra Shekhar has indicated a desire to support the SP-RLD coalition for the 2024 elections, but no official discussion of the matter has yet taken place.
(Inputs from Agencies)