Ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) announced that numerous parties are expressing interest in allying with the local party. They also stated that they plan to contest the elections with a party that agrees to work in the interests of farmers and the general public. RLD national spokesperson Pawan Agri said that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) offered four parliamentary seats in the state for an alliance with the RLD.
Speaking to ANI, Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) national spokesperson Pawan Agri said, “It is an election year. Many parties are coming to an alliance with us. The BJP had offered an alliance last time, and this time, offers are also being made. They are talking about four seats, but we have made preparations for 12 Lok Sabha seats.” “We will decide with whom we will contest the elections in alliance. We will contest elections in alliance with a party that will agree to our demands and work in the interest of the general public and farmers,” he said.
Earlier on Wednesday, responding to the speculations doing the rounds that Jayant Chaudhary-led Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) might join forces with the National Democratic Alliance ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav said that the grandson of former Prime Minister Chaudhary Charan Singh is an educated person, and he will not let the fight for farmers weaken. “Jayant Chaudhary is an educated person and he understands politics really well. I am hopeful that he will not let the fight for farmers weaken,” Akhilesh Yadav said.
There are reports that Jayant Chaudhary is in advanced talks with the BJP for a seat-sharing formula for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. The reports came nearly three weeks after Yadav announced the Samajwadi Party’s alliance with the RLD for the April-May polls.
According to party sources, RLD agreed to fight in alliance for 7 to 8 seats out of the 80 seats in Uttar Pradesh, with most of the seats in Western UP. The Samajwadi Party is also striking an alliance with the Congress for the Lok Sabha polls, with the Congress expected to contest 11 seats. Meanwhile, Akhilesh’s wife and Samajwadi Party MP, Dimple Yadav, exuded confidence that Chaudhary wouldn’t leave the INDIA bloc.
Apart from this, Samajwadi Party leader Shivpal Yadav also said that RLD will remain in the INDIA bloc fold. SP and RLD had contested the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections 2022 together.
