Tie-up talks unlikely sans Nitish Kumar

LUCKNOW: Hopes for exploring a possible grand secular coalition in UP-led by ruling Samajwadi Party hit a little road bump, with Bihar CM Nitish Kumar not likely to attend SP's silver jubilee on Saturday.

However, JD-U's Shard Yadav, RLD chief Ajit Singh, RJD chief Lalu Yadav are slated to attend the grand gala celebrations.

No immediate talks exploring a coalition are expected among the leaders of various party's to be present on Saturday.

Their presence on a common stage will only be a show of strength and lay ground for a open minded discussion to seek electoral tie-ups ahead.

However Nitish Kumar's absence is likely to be a dampener, as he is seen as a big influence on Kurmi voters, which the SP wants to consolidate on its side.

Kumar has been holding small rallies in UP for the last few months seeking to strengthen his hold over the community in the state.

Sources said that both Kumar and Ajit Singh, the two main players who will make the SP-led coalition a formidable force, are hesitant to explore a electoral tie up as the recent family feud in Mulayam Singh Yadav's clan as a roadblock.

The prospective coalition partners are not sure who from the SP will have the final word in the coalition talks and will wait a while before taking a final call. they also want a clarity on teh CM face from teh SP, as it has not yet fully backed Akhilesh Yadav for the same.

Shivpal Yadav who is leading the colaition building initiative also said on Friday that the silver jubilee function would only bring all former socialists from across India together, and is not going to be an event to start stitching together a coalition in UP.