Barely three days after resigning from the Samajwadi Party, Swami Prasad Maurya launched a new political party, Rashtriya Shoshit Samaj Party, on Thursday.
The party was announced at an event at the Talkatora Stadium in the national capital Delhi. On the occasion, a large number of supporters of Swami Prasad Maurya together pledged to raise their voice for the Dalits and backward people.
The senior Uttar Pradesh leader resigned from Samajwadi Party membership and the post of MLC on February 20 accusing the party of discrimination.
Maurya’s move is being linked to the Lok Sabha elections. According to political experts, he has the potential to inflict the biggest loss on the Samajwadi Party politically.
Although the Rashtriya Shoshit Samaj Party, a party led by Dalit and OBC leaders, formed in 2013 by Saheb Singh Dhangar in Aligarh, it failed to leave its mark in electoral politics. With Maurya taking the charge, the party is expected to be revived and could even put up a challenge to Akhilesh Yadav in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
Earlier on February 13, Swami Prasad Maurya resigned from the post of SP general secretary accusing the high command of discrimination. He held senior positions in the BSP for 20 years and served as a cabinet minister in the Mayawati government.
Before the 2017 elections, Swamy switched sides and joined the BJP. He was made a cabinet minister when the party formed its government under the leadership of Yogi Adityanath. However, after just five years of his stint with the BJP, he was disillusioned with saffron party and joined the SP before the 2022 elections.