Will withdraw petition if Shivpal merges his party: SP

The Samajwadi Party on Sunday said that it will consider withdrawing its petition seeking disqualification of Shivpal Singh Yadav as member of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly if he agrees to merge his Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party Lohia (PSPL) with it.

Senior SP leader and Leader of Opposition Ram Govind Chaudhary had moved a petition, seeking disqualification of Shivpal Yadav on September 13.

"If Shivpal Yadav dissolves his party and merges it with SP, the party will consider withdrawing its petition," he told reporters.

This is the first time that the Samajwadi Party has extended an olive branch to Shivpal Yadav.

Chaudhary said that the party has shown utmost patience in dealing with Shivpal Yadav.

"He was elected on Samajwadi Party ticket in 2017 from Jaswantnagar assembly seat but he floated a new party and contested against the SP candidate in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections," he said.

It is noteworthy that a week ago, Akhilesh Yadav had said that his doors were open for anyone who wished to come into the party.

Shivpal Yadav, when asked to comment on the statement, had said: "There is full scope for unity in the family but some people are hatching conspiracies and do not want unity in the family and the party."IANS