Mata Prasad Pandey, the new Leader of Opposition in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly, at the party office in Lucknow on July 28, 2024.
| Photo Credit: Sandeep Saxena
The Samajwadi Party (SP) on July 28 appointed Mata Prasad Pandey as the Leader of Opposition in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly. The SP made the announcement a day before the beginning of the U.P. Assembly session.
The 81-year-old represents Itwa Assembly constituency in Siddharthnagar district. Mr. Pandey has served as Speaker of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly twice, including between 2012-2017 and was elected MLA for the first time in the 1980 Assembly polls.
Apart from Mr. Pandey, former U.P. Minister and Kanth MLA Kamal Akhtar has been appointed Chief Whip of the SP in the State Assembly, and Rakesh Kumar Verma, MLA from Raniganj, has been named deputy whip.
The appointment of a Brahmin leader to a key post holds significance as the SP continues its efforts to strengthen its base among the backwards, Dalits and minorities based on its PDA [Pichada, Dalit, and Alpasankhyak] plank.
“Mata Prasad Ji is a loyal soldier of socialist ideology. He has been associated with socialist parties since his students’ days. He has more than five decades of experience in active politics and has been elected MLA several times. He is the right choice for the post of Leader of Opposition,” said Rajendra Choudhary, SP’s chief spokesperson to The Hindu.
Inclusive politics
On Mr. Pandey’s caste identity and if his choice was a shift from the Backward centric politics of the SP to more inclusive politics, Mr. Choudhary said, “Our party respects all sections of society and believes in inclusive politics, the agara (upper caste) are part of our PDA, A means alpasankhyak (minorities), agara (upper caste) and aadhi aabadi.”
Earlier in the day, SP MLAs met at the state party office to choose the Leader of Opposition. The MLAs unanimously authorised SP president Akhilesh Yadav to declare the face of the opposition in the State Assembly.
The post of Opposition leader has remained vacant since SP president Akhilesh Yadav was elected to the Lok Sabha in the 2024 polls.
Mr. Pandey will lead the SP in the monsoon session of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly starting on July 29. The SP has over 100 MLAs in the Assembly. This will be the first session of the State Assembly after the Lok Sabha election.
The SP president, Mr. Yadav, while congratulating Mr. Pandey, added that his elevation will help the U.P. Assembly. “Heartiest congratulations to senior socialist leader Shri Mata Prasad Pandey ji on being elected as the Leader of Opposition in the UP Legislative Assembly. Shri Mata Prasad Pandey Ji is extremely experienced in dealing with affairs of the Vidhan Sabha; it will benefit not only all the SP MLAs but also the Speaker of the House, the Chief Minister, and all his ministers and MLAs,” said Mr. Yadav.
Betrayal of backward classes, says BJP leader
Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and Deputy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya while greeting the new Leader of Opposition lashed out at Mr. Yadav, for not choosing a Backward or Dalit, describing the appointment as a betrayal of backward classes and Dalits. “Congratulations to Shri Mata Prasad Pandey ji on becoming the Leader of Opposition in the U.P. Assembly. It is hoped that he will play the role of a constructive opposition leader. But the SP chief Akhilesh Yadav has betrayed the Backward and Dalits. SP’s PDA has been a big betrayal. The BJP will repeat the 2017 victory in 2027,” Mr. Maurya said on X.
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