Explained: Why Akhilesh, Mayawati joined hands

March 14, 2018 15:58

So, why did Akhilesh and Mayawati come together for the March 11 by-election in Uttar Pradesh?

Twenty-three years after the BSP-SP alliance ended bitterly, the two parties have come together to counter the BJP in the Lok Sabha by-election in Gorakhpur and Phulpur. The Gorakhpur seat was represented by UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath from 1998 to 2017. Phulpur, represented once by Jawaharlal Nehru, was won by Keshav Prasad Maurya, now UP's deputy CM by a record margin in 2014.

Dr Prashant Trivedi of the Lucknow-based Giri Institute of Social Studies, tells Rediff.com's Archana Masih the reason behind the alliance. Do read the interview here.

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