Alliance In Trouble? RLD Plans To Contest 12 Lok Sabha Seats In Western UP, Sends Signal To Ally SP

Amid speculations of a potential shift in alliance, the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) announced its plan to contest 12 Lok Sabha seats in western Uttar Pradesh for the 2024 elections.

The RLD's decision appears to be a direct message to the Samajwadi Party (SP). RLD state unit chief Ramashish Rai highlighted that the party didn't benefit significantly from sacrificing seats for the sake of its alliance with the Akhilesh Yadav-led party.

The 12 Lok Sabha seats that the RLD intends to contest are located in its stronghold of western Uttar Pradesh. These include Kairana, Muzaffarnagar, Bijnor, Nagina, Amroha, Meerut, Bulandshahr, Aligarh, Hathras, Fatehpur Sikri, Mathura, and Baghpat.

The SP-RLD alliance has experienced strain recently, particularly due to disagreements over the urban local body polls. RLD chief Jayant Chaudhary's absence from the 23 June Opposition unity meeting in Patna further fueled speculations.

However, Chaudhary clarified that he would attend the next meeting for Opposition unity scheduled on 17-18 July in Bengaluru after reports emerged of his alleged meeting with a Union minister, hinting at a potential move to the BJP-led NDA.

The RLD lost its state-level party status in April this year after failing to secure at least 6 per cent of the votes in the 2022 Assembly polls and the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, both fought in alliance with the SP.

During the Assembly polls held last year, the RLD contested 33 out of the total 403 seats. Despite a modest vote share of 2.85 per cent, the party managed to secure victory in eight constituencies.

Currently, the RLD's tally stands at nine seats following their success in the bypoll for the Khatauli Assembly seat in December last year.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the RLD contested three seats but did not emerge victorious, garnering a vote share of 1.69 per cent.

During the 2019 polls, when the SP, RLD, and BSP formed an alliance, the SP contested in 37 seats and managed to win 5. In the subsequent 2022 Assembly polls, the SP contested in 347 seats, including some seats shared with smaller parties, and secured an impressive victory in 111 constituencies.

Currently categorized as an "unrecognized party" by the Election Commission, the RLD remains registered but not formally recognized. It aims to regain its status as a state-level party.

RLD state unit chief Rai emphasized the importance of regaining state-level party status and expressed the party's dissatisfaction with the previous election outcomes. He noted that if the RLD had contested more seats, it might have retained its state-level status, which it considers crucial for bringing about change in Uttar Pradesh.

Insiders within the RLD conveyed that their intention was to signal to the SP that the smaller party should not be taken for granted. During the urban civic polls, the RLD criticized the SP for not allocating any mayoral seats to them, resulting in the SP losing the seat in Meerut.

Senior SP leaders acknowledged the RLD's grievances but stated that the party still needs to prove its worth. They highlighted that the RLD's support base primarily consists of Jats, who benefited from the alliance with the SP due to Muslim support. While they acknowledged that 12 seats might be a demanding request, they regarded it as a potential bargaining position.

The path ahead involves negotiations and talks between the RLD leadership and the SP. Both parties expressed hope for finding a middle ground and reaching a resolution.

The decision regarding seat-sharing will be made by the SP's national leadership at the appropriate time, according to SP national spokesperson Nidhi Yadav.