Gadkari, colleagues divided over tainted UP ex-ministers

The divide within the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on the induction of tainted ex-ministers of Mayawati’s government in UP is not going to bridge soon. Party president Nitin Gadkari is seemingly not ready to yield to critical views of other senior leaders on the issue.

The way Gadkari had inducted former ministers Babu Singh Kushwaha and Badshah Singh without discussing the issue has not been appreciated by ex-party chief L K Advani and Sushma Swaraj, leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha.

Gadkari appears to have since told Kushwaha and Badshah Singh that if any investigative or legal action is taken against them by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), the BJP would not protect them, as the party doesn’t want to be seen protecting the corrupt.

A senior BJP functionary said: “Gadkari believes Kushwaha will bring votes for the BJP and has asked him to campaign for the party. The party will neither give him an election ticket, nor make him an office-bearer. The party is not in a very strong position in Uttar Pradesh and we have to take chances to do well. Inducting Kushwaha and Badshah Singh is a risk the party is ready to take.”

The decision to induct the two was on the basis of an internal survey carried out by an Arun Narendranath, who has been conducting these for Gadkari. Though the survey results were questioned within the party, Gadkari reportedly strongly believes the survey where it says the inductions would help the party gain seats and vote share in UP.

Gadkari’s surveyor had allegedly predicted 28 seats for the party in the Assam assembly elections it won only four.

Advani is upset because Gadkari had not cared to mention the controversial induction plan during the earlier Central Election Committee meeting, when the entire senior leadership was present.

Problems are also rearing their head on another party front. The Janata Dal (United), its senior coalition partner in neighbouring Bihar, has parted ways in UP. Its senior leaders, Sharad Yadav and Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, are upset at seat-sharing and also feel the induction of personalities like Singh and Kushwaha would hurt the anti-corruption stance of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance.

A senior JD(U) functionary said: “We had told the BJP during the Karnataka crisis that B S Yeddyurappa should be sacked from the party. They didn’t listen. And, now they have inducted four tainted ministers of the Mayawati government for political gains, which is not acceptable.”