File photo of Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav.
The Samajwadi Party (SP) today accused the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) of hatching a 'conspiracy' on behalf of Nitish Kumar and Lalu Prasad after the Sharad Pawar-led party decided to walk out of the third front in Bihar.
"NCP leader Tariq Anwar severed ties with the third front as part of a conspiracy hatched on gesture from Nitish Kumar and Lalu Prasad," SP national vice president Kiranmoy Nanda told reporters.
The NCP had on Thursday announced that it was quitting the grouping citing "pro-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) statements" by Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav.
Mr Nanda, accompanied by Bhagwan Singh Kushwaha, leader of Pappu Yadav's Janadhikar Party, a constituent of third front, alleged that Mr Anwar had been with Mr Prasad and Mr Kumar in the grand secular alliance earlier.
Coming down heavily on NCP for pointing accusing fingers at SP chief, Mr Nanda said, "Our leader Mulayam Singh Yadav does not need to take a certificate of secularism from anybody."
"The people of the country knows that Mulayam Singh Yadav never indulged in politics of religion and caste. Our fight is against BJP which is playing a dangerous game in the name of caste and religion," the SP vice president, who is also in-charge of party affairs in Bihar, said.
He came down heavily on NCP general secretary and MP Tariq Anwar, saying "he had come to join the third front and we had not invited him."
Rubbishing Mr Anwar's comment that the decision was in reaction to Samajwadi Party's purported comment that there was a wave in favour of the BJP and that the saffron party would form the government in the coming days in Bihar, Mr Nanda said," There is no wave in favour of BJP in Bihar. Our leader Mulayam Singh Yadav never asked anybody to vote for BJP."
Janadhikar Party campaign committee chief Bhagwan Singh Kushwaha also came down heavily on Mr Anwar and called him a "betrayer."
SP, NCP, Janadhikar Party of Madhepura MP Pappu Yadav, Samajwadi Janata Party of former Union minister Devendra Prasad Yadav, National Peoples Party of former Lok Sabha Speaker PA Sangma and Samras Samaj Party of former Union minister Nagmani had come together to form a third front to face the Assembly election.