Uttar Pradesh-based politician Om Prakash Rajbhar and his Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP) entered Bihar on Thursday attacking chief minister Nitish Kumar and holding a public rally here in the capital Patna to mark the end of his month-long ‘Savdhan Yatra’ that had rolled out from Lucknow.
He has been eyeing electoral politics in Bihar and is trying to make inroads in the caste-based politics in the state. His party claims to be catering to the interests of the Other Backward Castes (OBC) and the Dalits.
Rajbhar is also a caste spread in large numbers in eastern Uttar Pradesh. It is currently counted among the OBC, but has been pressing for a place among the scheduled tribes (ST). The caste claims allegiance to 11th century King Suheldev, who ruled from Shravasti, and is known for his brave exploits.
Several thousand SBSP workers and supporters, carrying the yellow flags of the party, converged at the Gandhi Maidan in Patna for the rally. They marched out in a disciplined manner after it got over. “The aim of my Savdhan Yatra has been to alert the people about how they are being cheated. They were earlier the slaves of the British, they are now the slaves of the politicians who make promises but never keep them. Nitish is also one such politician. He cannot be trusted, his promises are empty, and the people of Bihar should be cautious about him in the next elections,” he said.
The SBSP president asserted that the promise of a ‘caste census’ by Nitish was a dud, else it would have been complete by now. He also pooh-poohed the speculations that the Bihar chief minister could contest the Lok Sabha polls from Phulpur constituency in Uttar Pradesh.
“If Nitish has the courage, he should go to Phulpur and see what happens to him. He will bite dust due to his unfulfilled promises in Bihar. He is trying to go to Delhi via Uttar Pradesh, and is dreaming of becoming the Prime Minister without keeping his word in his own state. The people of Uttar Pradesh will not allow this to happen, and the people of Bihar should also do the same,” he added.
A few days ago Rajbhar had stated that he would flay and skin Nitish if the caste census does not happen in Bihar. He asserted standing by his comments on Thursday, and called for a caste census in the country every 10 years.
The SBSP was founded in 2002 and has been contesting elections in Uttar Pradesh since then, either independently or in alliance with other parties, including Apna Dal, the BJP and the Samajwadi Party (SP).
The party had contested eight seats and won five in 2017 Assembly elections in alliance with the BJP in Uttar Pradesh and Rajbhar became a minister in Yogi Adityanath’s cabinet. It contested 17 seats in the 2022 polls there in alliance with the SP and won six seats, but broke away soon afterwards.
As far as Bihar is concerned, the SBSP contested two and five seats in 2015 and 2020 Assembly elections, respectively, with no success. It is now planning to go big in the state now.
Sources said that Rajbhar is again gravitating towards the BJP, and his entry in Bihar could lead to cutting away a chunk of voters that have been traditionally supporting Nitish’s Janata Dal United (JDU) and Lalu Prasad’s Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD).
