Shivpal to take 'major decision' after Navratri

Lucknow, April 5 (IANS) Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party Lohia (PSPL) leader Shivpal Singh Yadav will visit Ayodhya after Navratri and announce a 'major decision' about his next political move.

Shivpal has already given enough indications of his growing preference for the BJP by following Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on the social media platforms. He even posted a photograph of Ram Darbar from his Twitter handle on Monday.

Though the BJP has maintained a studied silence on Shivpal joining the saffron Parivar, sources in the party claim that with Shivpal in the BJP, the strategy for the 2024 elections could take a major leap forward.

"Shivpal Singh Yadav is a respected leader among Yadavs and his following is bound to benefit any party that he joins," admitted a party functionary.

The BJP, which had so far concentrated on non-Yadav OBCs, is now elated that under Shivpal Yadav's leadership, the party can hope to get a slice of Yadav votes in the next Lok Sabha elections from the Yadav belt that includes Etah, Etawah, Mainpuri, Kannauj, Firozabad and Farrukhabad.

The BJP knows that if it welcomes Shivpal Yadav into the party it would be a major psychological blow to the Samajwadi leadership that is yet to recover from Aparna Yadav joining the BJP.

According to the political grapevine, the BJP is mulling a proposal to nominate Shivpal Yadav as deputy Speaker in the state Assembly.

The deputy speaker's post traditionally goes to the opposition.

Last year, the BJP had played a similar game when it nominated rebel SP MLA Nitin Agarwal as deputy speaker.