Lucknow, October 14, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Three Samajwadi Party (SP) MLAs who had earlier rebelled against the party formally joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday, marking a significant political development ahead of the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections.
The MLAs are Rakesh Pratap Singh, who represents Gauriganj in Amethi district; Abhay Singh, the MLA from Gosaiganj in Ayodhya district; and Vinod Chaturvedi, who represents Kalpi in Jalaun district.
Uttar Pradesh BJP president Pankaj Chaudhary and the party’s national general secretary Smriti Irani inducted the three legislators at an event held in Amethi. They were welcomed into the party and presented with saffron stoles.
Cabinet Minister Dara Singh Chauhan, Pichhda Varg Morcha national president Amarpal Maurya, and several senior BJP leaders, MLAs and office-bearers were also present.
After joining the BJP, Rakesh Pratap Singh thanked his supporters and said people in his constituency had backed his decision to join the party. He claimed that his supporters had assured him of their continued support and that approximately 98 per cent of those active at the booth level in his constituency would leave the SP and join the BJP.
Singh also claimed that a large number of current and former public representatives would join the BJP alongside him.
Earlier, he had indicated that around 700 gram pradhans, former village heads, current and former Kshetra Panchayat members, and Zila Panchayat members could join the BJP. He subsequently claimed that the number of current and former public representatives joining the party could be around 1,000.
However, the actual number of people who joined the BJP in line with these claims has not been independently verified.
Singh, the Gauriganj MLA, first entered the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly on an SP ticket in 2012. He went on to win the Assembly elections in 2017 and 2022, securing three consecutive victories.
Despite his electoral success, differences between Singh and the SP leadership widened over the past few years. During the 2024 Rajya Sabha elections, he voted in favour of the BJP candidate. The SP subsequently expelled him from the party in June 2025.
Singh had also taken positions contrary to the SP leadership during controversies surrounding the Ramcharitmanas and other issues. During the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, he campaigned for BJP candidate Smriti Irani in Amethi.
His formal induction into the BJP now marks a clear shift in his political allegiance. Some members of his family had also joined the BJP earlier.
For the BJP, the key challenge will be to integrate the political influence of the three MLAs into its organisational structure and ensure coordination with local party workers.
The SP, meanwhile, faces the task of retaining its traditional support base and strengthening its organisational presence in the constituencies represented by the three legislators.
The electoral impact of their move will depend on how many supporters follow them into the BJP, the strength of the party’s local organisation and the political equations that take shape ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections.
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