Why Ajit Singh Is Important In UP, And Why He Hasn't Found An Ally Yet

Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh politician Ajit Singh, who has partnered every political party in the state, is looking for an ally again for the assembly elections early next year. But things have not worked out yet, mainly because of his reputation as a fickle partner.

Big players like the Samajwadi Party and the BJP have reportedly told Ajit Singh that they would want a merger of his party with them to prevent him from switching sides after the elections.

His track record urges them to be wary - Ajit Singh has been a minister in the National Front government, a BJP-led government and a Congress-led government at the Centre. In UP, his party has partnered with both the Samajwadi Party and its arch rival, the Bahujan Samaj Party of Mayawati.   

Ajit Singh's meeting with Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav on Sunday drummed up interest disproportionate to the number of seats his party holds - nine in the 403-member UP assembly and none in Parliament.

Rashtriya Lok Dal leaders say the party is influential in 12 Western UP districts with 60-odd assembly seats, dominated by Jats.  

More than a decade ago, Ajit Singh's party had the biggest support among UP's Jats owing to the legacy of his father and former Prime Minister Choudhary Charan Singh. That faded after Charan Singh's death and Ajit Singh saw a new low in the 2014 national election, when his party won not a single Parliament seat in UP.

But Ajit Singh's influence in the region remains and in the close battle that the UP polls are expected to be, his support for any party could tip the balance.

"With SP support RLD can win seats. But, there is a catch. If Ajit Singh wins some seats there is no guarantee that he will stay with the SP. If the BSP or the BJP is close to government formation, Ajit Singh may switch loyalty," an SP leader said.  

But if his candidates contest on a Samajwadi Party ticket, "his elected men will remain bound by anti-defection laws", the leader said.