Expulsions From Samajwadi Party Seen as Signal Against Betrayal, Especially Along Hindutva Lines

Lucknow: In a major political shake-up, the Samajwadi Party (SP) on Saturday (June 21) expelled three of its seven rebel MLAs – Abhay Singh (Gosaiganj), Rakesh Pratap Singh (Gauriganj) and Manoj Pandey (Unchahar) – for cross-voting in favour of the BJP during the Rajya Sabha elections held in February 2024.

The party accused them of indulging in communal politics and betraying its core ideology of socialism and secularism.

In an official statement, the SP said: “We gave them ample time to reconsider their position and return to the party line. That time is now over. There is no place in the SP for those who promote anti-people politics. Actions against the party’s ideology are unforgivable.”

The decision has sparked debate across Uttar Pradesh’s political landscape, as it comes less than two years ahead of the crucial 2027 assembly elections. It is being seen as a clear attempt by SP president Akhilesh Yadav to consolidate his party’s ideological base and send a message that betrayal will not be tolerated, especially when it involves alignment with pro-Hindutva politics.

February 2024 cross-voting

During the Rajya Sabha elections held in February 2024, seven SP MLAs voted in favour of BJP- and National Democratic Alliance-backed candidates, undermining the SP’s prospects.

This act of defiance led to the electoral loss of one of the SP’s key candidates, retired IAS officer Alok Ranjan. While the party managed to get Jaya Bachchan and Ramji Lal Suman elected, Ranjan’s defeat enabled the BJP to clinch a surprise eighth seat for its candidate Sanjay Seth.

Apart from the three recently expelled MLAs, the other four legislators who voted against the party line were Rakesh Pandey, Pooja Pal, Vinod Chaturvedi and Ashutosh Maurya.

Another SP MLA, Maharaji Prajapati, abstained from voting altogether.

The expelled MLAs have accused the SP of being anti-Hindu and claim their political stance is aligned with protecting ‘sanatan dharma’.

Manoj Pandey, a two-time minister, said, “The SP insults the sanatan Hindu faith. I raised this objection many times, but the leadership ignored me.”

He added, “I had openly joined the BJP in May 2024 in the presence of Union home minister Amit Shah. Ironically, the SP is now announcing my expulsion.”

Strategic move or delayed action?

While political observers acknowledge that the SP's action sends a strong signal, many question its delay and limited scope. Notably, only three of the seven cross-voting MLAs were expelled.

Party spokesperson Fakhrul Hasan Chand justified the move, stating, “The other MLAs may have voted against the party line, but they did not make repeated statements against the party’s ideology. The three expelled MLAs crossed both ideological and disciplinary lines.”

However, the SP has stopped short of writing to the assembly secretariat to seek the MLAs' disqualification under the anti-defection law.

Hasan confirmed, “We have expelled them from the party, but we have not moved to cancel their assembly memberships yet.”

This has left the expelled leaders as unaffiliated MLAs, continuing their legislative terms independently.

Ties with BJP and political realignments

The SP leadership grew increasingly concerned after signs emerged that these MLAs were growing close to the BJP. The tipping point came when Shah visited Manoj Pandey’s home during the 2024 Lok Sabha campaign after a rally in Rae Bareli. The closed door meeting was considered a signal of deep political coordination.

Insiders claim the SP had planned their expulsion much earlier but delayed action while searching for strong candidates to replace them in the 2027 elections.

“Several potential candidates were hesitant to join the SP as long as these MLAs were active, fearing they would not be given tickets,” said a senior party leader on condition of anonymity.

The party is especially mindful of preserving its social coalition of pichhde (backward classes), Dalits and alpsankhyak (minorities), which played a critical role in the INDIA bloc’s success in Uttar Pradesh in 2024.

The alliance won 43 of the state's 80 Lok Sabha seats, marking a major setback for the BJP.

“Akhilesh Yadav cannot afford to let leaders promoting Hindutva remain within the party. Their presence threatens the party’s narrative and its appeal among Muslims, Dalits and OBCs,” noted political commentator Utkarsh Sinha.

He added that the expulsions were not merely punitive but strategic. “Abhay Singh, for instance, worked to defeat SP’s official candidate Ajeet Prasad in the Milkipur bypoll. The decision to expel him is both a warning and a course correction.”

SP may be wary of triggering bypolls with 2027 on the horizon

People in political circles have also asked why the SP is not moving to have the expelled members disqualified as MLAs.

Siddharth Kalhans, a political analyst, said, “This is a half-measure. If you are taking action, then act decisively. If Akhilesh Yadav believes they violated party discipline, could he consider seeking the cancellation of their memberships under the anti-defection law?”

“I sense that Akhilesh wants them [the three expelled MLAs] to complete their terms,” he said, adding to suggest that both the SP and the BJP may be keen to avoid bypolls that could swing either way.

According to Sinha, the SP may also be wary of triggering by-elections with less than 18 months to go for full-scale assembly polls.

“The BJP would likely block any disqualification move to retain these friendly MLAs. By avoiding legal battles, the SP keeps its focus on 2027 instead of getting caught in procedural delays,” he said.

SP ‘no longer socialist’, ‘soft on anti-national forces’: expelled MPs

Following their expulsion, the leaders hit back with sharp criticism of the SP leadership.

Rakesh Pratap Singh said, “This expulsion is good news. I felt suffocated in a party that had abandoned its grassroots workers. Giving Rajya Sabha tickets to elites like Jaya Bachchan and Alok Ranjan without consulting the parliamentary board is a betrayal of the workers and legislators.”

He also said that socialism had “ended in the SP long ago”.

Abhay Singh for his part accused the party of being soft on ‘anti-national forces’ and claimed that he stood for the interests of the Sanatan Hindu faith. “Even if my political career ends, I will not compromise on Ram and the nation,” he said defiantly.

Senior journalist Hemant Tiwari said the expulsions are a formality. “Their ideological association with the BJP was already clear. The relationship with the SP ended long ago. The latest development is simply an official confirmation.”

Tiwari also pointed out that these leaders had long stopped toeing the party line. “They had already begun speaking against Akhilesh Yadav and in favour of pro-Hindutva politics. The expulsion is just catching up with political reality.”

2027 and beyond

The episode underlines the SP’s larger challenge – maintaining ideological purity while preparing for the next electoral battle. Political observers say the message is loud and clear: the SP is gearing up for 2027 with a tighter, more disciplined cadre and no tolerance for deviation.

Whether this move reaps electoral dividends remains to be seen. But one thing is certain – communal posturing and cross-voting now come at a political cost in Yadav’s SP.

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