In 1989, when the Janata Dal—formed after the merger of several political parties—split, Yadav remained with the Samajwadi Janata Party (SJP), a faction of the Janata Dal headed by Chandra Shekhar. It was in 1992 that he broke away to form his own party—the SP. At the broadest level, the SP was presented as a party promoting the principles of liberty, equality, justice and democracy. After the party was founded, it won the UP legislative assembly elections the following year, in alliance with the Kanshi Ram-led Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP). Mulayam became UP chief minister for the second time, the first time under the banner of the SP. The wrestler-turned-politician garnered immense support from sections of the OBC and Muslim communities. His rise in the political realm became a source of great pride among the backward classes who resonated with him.