Samta Party

The Samta Party (SP) is a political party in India, initially formed in 1994 by George Fernandes and Nitish Kumar. It was an offshoot of the Janata Dal, with the alleged casteism of the parent party being the reason given for the split. The party has socialist leanings, and at one point wielded considerable political and social influence in North India, particularly in Bihar. In 2003, the bulk of the party merged with the Janata Dal (United), but a small breakaway faction continues to function under the name of the Samta Party.

History

In the general elections of 1996, the Samta Party formed an alliance with the Bharatiya Janta Party and won eight seats, six of which were in Bihar and one each in Uttar Pradesh and Odisha. Before the election, the party was largely rooted only in Bihar. In the 1998 general elections, again in alliance with Bharatiya Janta Party, it won twelve seats, ten from Bihar and two from Uttar Pradesh.

Merger with Janata Dal (United)

Merger

In October 2003, George Fernandes, the president of the party, announced that the party would be merging with the Janata Dal (United). The Janata Dal (United) was part of the ruling coalition in the National Democratic Alliance. One minority in the party led by Brahmanand Mandal refused to go along with the merger. The Election Commission of India decided that the merger was not technically complete and so a faction was allowed to function under the name of Samata Party in the leadership of Brahmanand Mandal.