New Delhi:

The dissent against the Uttar Pradesh government’s order to eateries to display names of owners during kanwar yatra has spread to the ruling alliance. Two Union ministers who are BJP allies have appealed to the state to roll back its decision. A third party, NItish Kumar’s Janata Dal United, has also criticised the order, calling it an example of discrimination.

After Lok Janshakti Party chief Chirag Paswan — who handles the Food Processing industries portfolio at the Centre — Rashtriya Lok Dal chief Jayant Chaudhary today said kanwariyas ask no-one their religion when they seek service. Neither should the matter (serving kanwariyas) be linked to any religion, he added.

“It seems that the order was taken without much thought and the government is adamant on it because the decision has been taken,” Mr Chaudhary — junior minister for education who has independent charge of skill development — was quoted as saying by news agency Press Trust of India.

“There is still time. It (roll back) should happen or the government should not put much emphasis on (implementing) it,” he added.

Mr Chaudhary also questioned if one should wear a name tag on one’s clothes to identify one’s religion. “Where all one would be made to place these identifiers! Should we now wear name tags too? So that one knows who to shake hands with?” said Mr Chaudhary, whose party has its stronghold in western Uttar Pradesh.

Earlier, Union minister Chirag Paswan had unequivocally opposed the order, saying he would “absolutely… never support or encourage” any divide in the name of caste or religion.

Another BJP ally, Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal (United), has also criticised the move. Party leader KC Tyagi has said the order should be withdrawn as it may cause communal tension. There should be no discrimination based on religion or caste, he said.

The Muzaffarnagar Police order to eateries along the Kanwar Yatra route to display owners’ names, has now been extended across Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. The order has been hugely criticised by the Opposition parties, who maintain it targets Muslim traders.

The matter came up in the traditional all-party meet held ahead of parliament’s budget session today. The Opposition parties made it clear that this will be one of the issues that will come up during the session.

Congress leader K Suresh said the party’s senior leader Gaurav Gogoi and Aam Aadmi Party’s Sanjay Singh criticised the decision at the meeting.

(With agencies)

Muzaffarnagar:

Rashtriya Lok Dal chief and BJP ally Jayant Chaudhary on Sunday demanded the Uttar Pradesh government roll back its order that eateries along the Kanwar route must display the names of their owners, saying the pilgrimage does not belong to any one religion or caste.

“It seems that the order was taken without much thought and the government is adamant on it because the decision has been taken,” the Rajya Sabha member told reporters here.

“There is still time. It (roll back) should happen or the government should not put much emphasis on (implementing) it,” he said.

No one identifies the Kanwar, neither the people who serve the Kanwar are identified on religion or caste, he added.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

Shahid Siddiqui, the national vice president of the Rashtriya Lok Dal, has resigned from the primary membership of the party and its post following the party’s merger with the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.

Mr Siddiqui, in a post on X, said that he resigned from the party as he cannot “silently watch undermining of all the institutions which have united and made India one of the great nations of the world.”

Respected Jayantji,

We have worked together for 6 long years and have respect for each other. I, for one, look upon you more as a younger brother than a colleague. We have stood shoulder to shoulder on significant issues and at creating an atmosphere of brotherhood and respect…

— shahid siddiqui (@shahid_siddiqui) April 1, 2024

“Yesterday I resigned from the position of National Vice President of RLD & its membership. Me and my family stood up against Indira’s Emergency & today can’t silently watch undermining of all the institutions which have united & made India one of the great nations of the world. My regards & best wishes to @jayantrld & other colleagues in the party,” he said on Monday.

Jayant Chaudhary, after months of speculation, joined the NDA after the centre conferred his late grandfather and former prime minister Chaudhary Charan Singh with the Bharat Ratna.

The BJP which eyes Western UP with optimism, to achieve its ambitious target of 370 seats on its own, despite facing setbacks in the last elections, wants to consolidate its base among the Jats, which are the RLD’s core base, and place it ahead in at least seven seats in the region.

The Jat community has significant influence in a dozen Lok Sabha and around 40 Assembly seats in West UP. They are estimated to make up between 10 and 15 per cent of the population in some 15 districts but are socially dominant, vocal, and have the capacity to build a political atmosphere.

In 2014, the BJP secured 24 out of 27 seats in the region, which dwindled to 19 in 2019, with all eight seats going to the SP-BSP combine.

Mr Siddiqui, however, wrote a separate post for Jayant Chaudhary and hailed his “commitment to secularism and constitutional values”.

“Respected Jayantji, we have worked together for 6 long years and have respect for each other. I, for one, look upon you more as a younger brother than a colleague. We have stood shoulder to shoulder on significant issues and at creating an atmosphere of brotherhood and respect among different communities. No one can doubt your commitment to secularism and the Constitutional values we both cherish. From the time of your late grandfather, Bharat Ratna Choudhary Charan Singhji, your late father Ajit Singhji, and yourself–all of you, as indeed the party you created have stood for these values,” Siddiqui said.

He further said that the RLD becoming a part of the NDA puts him in a bind and a piquant situation.

“I have struggled long and hard in my mind and heart but find myself unable to be associated with an alliance headed by the BJP. I am aware of your political compulsions and am not in a position to advise you otherwise. But speaking for myself I am constrained to withdraw myself from this ongoing campaign, as indeed from the RLD,” the former RLD leader said.

“Kindly accept my resignation. As always wishing you all the very best in the forthcoming elections,” he added.
Lok Sabha polls will be held in seven phases beginning April 19. Uttar Pradesh, which sends the maximum number of MPs, 80, to Parliament, will vote in all seven phases.
With political dynamics shifting in the state, the BJP is spearheading a robust alliance, encompassing parties like RLD, SBSP, Apna Dal (S), and Nishad party bolstering its position.
On the other hand, while Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav aligns with the opposition bloc, Mayawati embarks on the electoral journey solo.
Voting for phases one and two will be held on April 19 and April 26. Next, the state will once again poll in phases three and four on May 7 and May 13. The Uttar Pradesh electorate will also vote in phases five, six and seven on May 20, May 23 and June 1 respectively. The votes will be counted on June 4.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

The Rashtriya Lok Dal on Monday named candidates for the Baghpat and Bijnor Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh that were allocated to it as part of a seat-share plan with the Bharatiya Janata Party.

Senior leader Rajkumar Sangwan – who has been with the RLD since it was founded by Ajit Singh – will contest the Baghpat seat, which was won by the BJP’s Satya Pal Singh in 2014 and 2019. This seat was contested by party boss Jayant Chaudhary five years ago. He lost by just under 20,000 votes.

The Baghpat seat is viewed as a family stronghold, having elected Ajit Singh a whopping seven times – from 1999 to 2009, when he contested from the RLD, and from 1989 to 1997, when he contested first as a Janata Dal candidate, then with the Congress, and finally as an independent lawmaker.  

Chandan Chauhan – the sitting MLA from UP’s Meerapur Assembly segment – will be fielded from Bijnor, which was won by Malook Nagar of Mayawati’s Bahujan Samaj Party in the 2019 election.

Mr Chauhan is the son of Sanjay Singh Chauhan, who won the Bijnor Lok Sabha seat in 2009. 

There was talk Jayant Chaudhary – a Rajya Sabha MP – could be a candidate, but that has now been put to bed. The party also named Yogendra Chaudhary as a Vidhan Parishad candidate.

Shortly after the announcement Mr Chaudhary posted on X (formerly Twitter), appealing for voters’ support for all three of his colleagues. “With your support and blessings, these three, who are keeping the flag of the Rashtriya Lok Dal high, will reach the House and talk about farmers…”

राष्ट्रीय लोकदल का झंडा बुलंद रखने वाले ये तीनों प्रतिनिधि आपके सहयोग और आशीर्वाद से सदन पहुँचकर किसान, कमेरा और विकास की बात करेंगे! https://t.co/e2P2Z0QMs3

— Jayant Singh (@jayantrld) March 4, 2024

All through last month there was furious speculation over the immediate political future of Jayant Chaudhary and his Rashtriya Lok Dal, which in January agreed a deal with the opposition INDIA bloc.

Shortly after, the centre’s decision to award a posthumous Bharat Ratna to Mr Chaudhary’s grandfather and former Prime Minister Chaudhary Charan Singh seemed to remove any doubt.

READ | “Dil Jeet Liya“: RLD Leader As PM Awards Bharat Ratna To Charan Singh

Minutes after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the award, Mr Chaudhary tweeted “Dil jeet liya (the heart has been won over)” and, days later, when asked about a possible alliance, told reporters, “Aaj main kis muh se inkaar karoon… (How can I deny your question today?).”

READ | “Had Limited Time To Decide”: RLD Leader On BJP Alliance Buzz

Confirmation of Mr Chaudhary’s jump – from INDIA to the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance – came after party boss JP Nadda said on X, “I heartily welcome his decision to join the NDA family.”

READ | Jayant Chaudhary’s Rashtriya Lok Dal Formally Joins BJP-Led NDA

The RLD is the second party – after Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal (United) – to quit the INDIA bloc.

The loss of the RLD is perhaps not as serious as that of the JDU, which was a founding member, but Jayant Chaudhary’s reversal will undoubtedly have an impact, simply because UP – with 80 seats – is the most politically significant state for the 2024 Lok Sabha election.

Of the 80 seats, the BJP won 62 in 2019. It will hope the RLD’s influence among the Jat community in western UP will help boost its score and achieve its target of 400 seats for the NDA.

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