“With the joining of former MP Dharmendra Kashyapji and his daughter Kirti Kashyap in the ‘PDA Movement’, our strength has multiplied manifold in Bareilly, Rohilkhand and across the entire UP,” Yadav told mediapersons at a press conference in Lucknow following their induction. Yadav also promised an assembly ticket to Kirti Kashyap. Dharmendra Kashyap is not the only leader to have joined the SP.
Yadav is carefully selecting leaders from non-Yadav OBC and non-Jatav Dalit communities to expand the party’s vote share among these sections. On Monday, Ram Bahadur Pasi joined the SP. A former IAS officer, Pasi was earlier associated with the BSP and contested the 2017 assembly election from Mohanlalganj on a BSP ticket, losing to the SP candidate in a close contest. He later left the BSP and joined the BJP in 2022.
Along with Pasi, former BSP leader Dara Singh Prajapati also joined the SP. Prajapati contested the 2024 Lok Sabha elections from Muzaffarnagar on a BSP ticket and secured 1.43 lakh votes, contributing to the defeat of BJP candidate Sanjeev Balyan. He is also a leader of the Rashtriya Prajapati Mahasabha, an organisation working for the welfare of the Prajapati community.
“With the joining of Ram Bahadurji and Dara Singhji, the BJP will have a tough time from now on in western UP,” the SP chief said. Apart from them, former BJP MLA Kushagra Sagar, who belongs to the Sainthwar community, also joined the SP on Monday. With an eye on the upcoming elections, Yadav is working to bring influential leaders from non-dominant OBC and Scheduled Caste communities into the party to help it bridge gaps in closely contested constituencies. Sources in the SP told ET that several such leaders from different regions of the state are likely to join the party in the coming days.
