Uttar Pradesh minister Om Prakash Rajbhar has reignited the decades-old debate on dividing the state into four states. He announced that the state will be divided into four parts after the caste census is completed. Speaking at an event on September 20, Rajbhar claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had assured him. “The Prime Minister said that there will be no problem with division if the caste census is completed. The state will be divided into four parts. If a Purvanchal state is formed, a leader from the Rajbhar community will become the Chief Minister,” he said. There has been a debate on dividing UP into Bundelkhand, Purvanchal, Awadh Pradesh and West Pradesh for a long time.

However, there have been differences of opinion among BJP allies on this issue. Nishad Party leader Sanjay Nishad described these comments as misleading. He said that the state is already developing and special funds are being allocated. BJP leader Sanjeev Balyan, however, supported Rajbhar. Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav rejected the proposal. He said that there are those who are talking about dividing the country and the state, and everyone should work together. It is noteworthy that the Mayawati government had also made a similar proposal in the past, but it did not move forward.