"No More Room...": Akhilesh Yadav After Welcoming Flock Of BJP Leaders

Akhilesh Yadav's declaration also came hours after Bhim Army chief Chandrashekhar Azad said seat-sharing talks for his Azad Samaj Party had broken down

There is no more room in the Samajwadi Party for "any BJP MLA, minister anymore" - Akhilesh Yadav's words on Saturday morning, a day after he welcomed seven ex-lawmakers, including two ministers, who quit the Yogi Adityanath government this week ahead of next month's election.

"Let me say this... I will not take any BJP MLA (or) minister anymore. They (the BJP) can deny tickets (to their leaders) if they wish to..." Mr Yadav told reporters in Lucknow.

Mr Yadav on Friday inducted Swami Prasad Maurya and Dharam Singh Saini, ex-ministers and key OBC leaders, as well as five other BJP MLAs and one from its ally, the Apna Dal.

The flood of OBC leaders who walked out of the BJP and the Yogi Adityanath government over a 72-hour period this week has been widely seen as having blown a big hole in the party's re-election bid.