Rajya Sabha polls: Mayawati suspends 7 rebels, says will even back BJP to defeat SP

“Our party would like to announce in advance that when elections for choosing MLCs are held, then we will give a tit-for-tat response to yesterday’s incident. Our party will use all its strength to defeat the second MLC candidate of the SP. To defeat the SP, BSP MLAs will vote for BJP or any other Opposition party likely to defeat the second SP candidate,” Mayawati said.

The BSP, meanwhile, suspended seven MLAs from the party’s membership for rebelling against the party’s candidate for Rajya Sabha election and said that it will seek cancellation of the membership of the seven MLAs from the Assembly under the anti-defection law if and when they join another party.

The seven MLAs are Choudhary Aslam Ali (Dhaulana in Hapur), Hargovind Bhargawa (Sidhauli reserved seat), Mohd Mujtaba Siddiqui (Pratappur in Prayagraj), Hakim Lal Bind (Handiya in Prayagraj), Mohd Aslam Raini (Bhina in Shravasti), Sushma Patel (Mugra Badshahpur in Jaunpur) and Vandana Singh (Sagdi in Azamgarh).

Understanding with BJP exposed: SP hits back

Lucknow: As seven BSP MLAs, who were suspended by party president Mayawati on Thursday, said they have no plans to join any other party, the Samajwadi Party (SP) hit back at the BSP chief, saying she has confessed to siding with the BJP. SP spokesman Rajendra Chaudhury said, “Her statement proves that the BSP had a prior understanding with the BJP. Mayawati’s statement is a confession of this… The BSP chief has exposed herself.” —ENS