LUCKNOW: Shivpal Singh Yadav, the sulking younger brother of Samajwadi Party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav, on Wednesday met Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, triggering speculation of realignment of political forces.
The development comes amid widening rift between Shivpal, who won the recent Assembly election from Jaswantnagar in Etawah on SP symbol, and his nephew and SP chief Akhilesh Yadav. After Shivpal took his oath office as an MLA of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly, he proceeded to Yogi’s official residence and the two leaders were closeted for about 20 minutes.
When reporters asked Shivpal whether he intends to join the BJP, he did not refute it, merely saying that he had already taken the oath of the House and did not want to say more than that for now. For the record, Shivpal’s Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party-Lohia termed it a “courtesy call” to greet Yogi on his victory and return to power in Uttar Pradesh.