|
New Delhi: The Congress in Uttar Pradesh faces the worrying prospect of a large-scale exodus of party leaders, supporters in tow, to the rival Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), party sources say.
Four members of the Lok Sabha and about a dozen lawmakers of the state assembly are believed to be keen to switch loyalties.
Former federal minister Akhilesh Das, who quit his Rajya Sabha seat and the party on May 6, is believed to be working behind the scenes to lure Congress leaders. Developments in the state unit have not escaped the eye of the party leadership and Congress president Sonia Gandhi last week summoned Pramod Tiwari, the party leader in the state assembly, despite her rather busy schedule on the campaign trail in Karnataka.
Das quit the party after being dropped from the council of ministers by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh last month. He has since been appointed national general secretary of the BSP.
Uttar Pradesh chief minister Mayawati, who also heads the party, has already named Das as the BSP candidate for the Lucknow Lok Sabha seat currently represented by former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
Worried about seats
The Congress had won just nine out of 80 Lok Sabha seats in the 2004 general elections from the state. It performed still worse in elections to the state Assembly last year, winning just 22 seats in the 403-member house.
Besides Sonia and her son Rahul Gandhi - who represent the Rae Bareili and Amethi seats from the state respectively - and three other winners who are all ministers, all the remaining four party MPs from the state are expected to join the BSP.
Of them, Rajesh Kumar Mishra, the lawmaker from Varanasi and Surendra Prakash Goel, the lawmaker from Hapur, are said to be in touch with Mayawati, while the other two, namely Manvendra Singh (Mathura) and Bijendra Singh (Aligarh) are said to be keeping a close watch on the situation.
Their prime concern apparently is that they may not be able to retain their Lok Sabha seats if they contest the next general election as Congress party nominees.
Incidentally, Rahul Gandhi has been working overtime to strengthen the party base in the state with the objective of boosting its tally. His dependence on some of his close friends to run the state unit has, however, annoyed many. Das too had accused him of running the party with the help of a coterie.
Mayawati has set her sights on a stronger BSP than the one which won 19 parliament seats in 2004. She is aiming to secure at least 40 seats from the state next year so that she can play the role of kingmaker.
|
