SP Picks Surprise Face Mata Prasad Pandey as LoP in UP Assembly, BJP & SP Term It Attempt to Woo Brahmin Votes – News18

Mata Prasad Pandey served as the Speaker of the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly twice — in 2004 under Mulayam Singh Yadav and again in 2012 under Akhilesh Yadav. (PTI)

The post had fallen vacant after Akhilesh Yadav quit the assembly to retain the Kannauj Lok Sabha seat he won in the recent 2024 Lok Sabha polls

Was the appointment of Mata Prasad Pandey as the Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the UP assembly an attempt by the Samajwadi Party to woo Brahmins?

The politically crucial state witnessed a key development on Sunday when SP appointed Pandey — a veteran leader in his 80s — as LoP, replacing party chief Akhilesh Yadav. The post had fallen vacant after Yadav quit the assembly to retain the Kannauj Lok Sabha seat he won in the recent 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

However, SP’s move — which came a day before UP assembly’s Monsoon Session — sparked a fresh controversy in UP, with political analysts calling it a ‘balancing act’ that aims to woo Brahmin voters ahead of the crucial bypolls that are to be held on 10 state assembly seats. Another question that raised eyebrows was why Yadav’s uncle and senior SP leader Shivpal Singh Yadav’s candidature was not considered for the post.

Surprise Move

SP insiders said the move was a surprise to them too. “Pandey-ji’s name was a surprise. We were not at all expecting him to be appointed as the LoP since he was not even in the race,” a party insider said. Three names were in the reckoning for the post — Shivpal Singh Yadav, Indrajit Saroj, and Tufani Saroj.

Who is Mata Prasad Pandey?

Pandey is a prominent politician and seven-term MLA from Itawa in Siddharthnagar district, Uttar Pradesh. Beginning his political career in 1980 as a Janta Party candidate, he represented Itawa under various parties, including Lok Dal, Janata Dal, and Samajwadi Party (SP). Pandey served as the Speaker of the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly twice — in 2004 under Mulayam Singh Yadav and again in 2012 under Akhilesh Yadav.

His career is marked by active participation in political movements aimed at uplifting the marginalised, often leading to imprisonment. He has held key ministerial roles, including minister for health in 1991 and minister for labour and employment in 2003. Pandey’s extensive legislative experience includes membership in numerous committees of the UP Legislative Assembly. After losing his seat in 2017, he made a comeback in 2022, narrowly defeating BJP’s SC Dwivedi.

Why the Decision?

“In the party meeting, the names were discussed for the post of LoP. The candidature of Indrajit Saroj was rejected since he came from the BSP. It was said that he might not be able to establish coordination with senior party leaders while a few raised the point that if a Dalit name has to be shortlisted, it should be Tufani Saroj. However, consensus could not be drawn on his name too. Then, the name of Shivpal Singh Yadav was discussed at length but a few party leaders said this might give a chance to the Opposition to corner the SP over ‘Parivaarvaad’,” sources said.

They added that some party leaders were of the opinion that since Akhilesh Yadav himself was LoP earlier, appointing another leader from the Yadav community would not be appropriate. Though there were reservations about Pandey’s age, the party finally gave its nod.

‘Prakash ka Stambha’

Calling Pandey a “Prakash ka Stambha (pillar of light)”, Akhilesh Yadav said the veteran leader “has the long experience of knowing, understanding and making others follow healthy traditions at the Vidhan Sabha”. The former chief minister added that Pandey’s experience would not only help SP MLAs but also the Speaker, the chief minister, and other ministers and MLAs.

Balancing act

SP’s move was seen as a ‘balancing act’ by political rivals and analysts, who accused the party of playing the ‘Brahmin card’ ahead of by-elections despite advocating for the PDA (Pichda Dalit Alpsankhyak) formula, which also yielded positive results for the party in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

“SP had initially talked about PDA and the formula also turned out to be a big hit in the 2024 polls which helped the party in improving its seat tally. However, done with PDA, now the party is trying to portray its ‘Brahmin sympathiser’ image in order to woo them in the upcoming bypolls,” said Shashikant Pandey, political observer and head of department of political science at Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar University, Lucknow.

Taking a dig at the Samajwadi Party, deputy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya criticised Akhilesh Yadav, saying his reality had been exposed. Maurya congratulated Pandey on his new role but highlighted that his appointment had disappointed leaders from backward and Dalit communities. He also mentioned that Akhilesh Yadav misled voters during the Lok Sabha elections.

Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati also slammed the SP, saying the party had gathered votes in the name of saving the Constitution but now ignored the Backwards.

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