'How can I refuse the offer now?': Jayant Chaudhary breaks silence on BJP alliance after Bharat Ratna move

Jayant Chaudhary, the Vice President of Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD), has publicly acknowledged his party's alliance with the BJP in Uttar Pradesh for the upcoming 2024 Lok Sabha elections. 

This political move comes on the heels of the Bharat Ratna award being conferred posthumously to his grandfather, Chaudhary Charan Singh, a former prime minister and prominent farmer leader. Chaudhary expressed that he 'could not refuse the offer' following this prestigious recognition of his grandfather's contributions to the nation.

"How can I refuse the offer now?" Chaudhary said. "Modi Ji's vision did what any other party could not do, till now," he added.

"Talking about seats or votes will make this day less important when I am being congratulated and PM Modi has given a decision which proves he understands the basic sentiments and character of the nation," he said.

The recent development dealt a blow to the Opposition INDIA bloc. According to the agreed-upon seat-sharing arrangement, the RLD will vie for two Lok Sabha seats—Baghpat and Bijnor—and has also secured a commitment for a Rajya Sabha seat.

With Jayant Chaudhary's RLD holding sway in certain areas of western Uttar Pradesh, the BJP aims to make gains in this region, which is home to the influential Jat community. In the 2019 Lok Sabha election, the BJP lost 16 seats in Uttar Pradesh, with seven coming from western UP. The party lost all six seats in the Moradabad division.

This development unfolds against the backdrop of disagreements over seat sharing within the INDIA bloc in Uttar Pradesh. Seat allocation talks between the Congress and the Samajwadi Party (SP) have yet to yield a resolution.

Despite the ongoing uncertainty, the Akhilesh Yadav-led SP has announced its candidates for 16 seats in Uttar Pradesh, catching the Congress off guard. In January, Akhilesh Yadav mentioned that the RLD would be allocated seven seats, but the specific constituencies were not clarified.

Earlier this week, as speculation grew about the RLD joining the NDA, Akhilesh Yadav commented, "Jayant Chaudhary is an educated person, and he understands politics well. I am hopeful that he will not let the fight for farmers and the prosperity of UP be weakened."

The RLD and the Samajwadi Party have been allies in Uttar Pradesh since the 2019 Lok Sabha election. In the 2019 polls, the RLD lost all three seats it contested while the Samajwadi Party won five seats.

In the 2022 Uttar Pradesh Assembly election, Akhilesh Yadav's party won 111 seats out of the 347 it contested, while the RLD won nine of the 33 constituencies.

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