OP Rajbhar takes dig at Akhilesh Yadav over SP-Cong ties, calls alliance ‘Thugbandhan’
Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh Minister and Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP) chief Om Prakash Rajbhar launched a sharp attack on Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav over his party’s ties with the Congress, questioning the nature of the alliance and accusing leaders of both parties of publicly taking jibes at each other.
In a post on X, Rajbhar directly addressed Akhilesh Yadav and claimed that Congress and SP leaders were engaged in a growing tussle over political space.
“Akhilesh ji! When you went to Raebareli, the Congress folks started telling you to go to Etawah instead; Chachu’s Congress crew wants to drag you to Jaswantnagar to show you your place, Imran Masood’s giving you the stink-eye, Ikra Hasan is putting the Congress folks in their place. Ajay Rai and Rajendra Pal Gautam have already turned the SP into the little brother, and your spokespersons are teaching the Congress folks to stay in their lane,” Rajbhar said.
He then questioned whether the differences between the two parties represented a genuine alliance.
“Hey Maharaja, is this what they call an alliance? In reality, this is called a Thugbandhan. There’s planning for the con job, and a fight brewing over divvying up the spoils of the loot. The fight’s about who gets to be the bigger thug?” Rajbhar said.
He also questioned whether Akhilesh had authorised his party leaders to openly criticise Congress leaders or whether they were acting independently.
“Just clear this up: did you yourself give your leaders permission to speak out against Congress? Or have Chachu and the rest of the leaders become self-reliant in this matter?” he asked.
Rajbhar further attacked the SP leadership over its political outreach and invited Akhilesh to visit Amethi, invoking the constituency’s electoral history involving Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.
“Anyway, when you take out the rath, Amethi is right next door to Lucknow here. Swing by for a quick visit. That same Amethi, which didn’t just defeat your friend Rahul Baba, but chased him out. Go tour that Amethi, Maharaja, let the Congress folks burn with envy,” he said.
Rajbhar concluded his post with religious and political slogans, writing:
“Jai Bharat, Jai Shri Ram, Jai Parshuram, Jai Shri Krishna, Jai Maharaja Suhaldev!”
Rajbhar’s remarks come amid political sparring between opposition parties and the BJP-led government in Uttar Pradesh, with the nature of cooperation and seat-level political dynamics among opposition parties remaining a recurring subject of debate in the state.