There are growing speculations that the next party to cross over from the Opposition ranks to the BJP could be the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RJD) led by Jayant Chaudhary. However, he cleared the air around these rumours and said “My stand is clear and I will attend the next round of Opposition meeting”.
On Sunday, Union minister Ramdas Athawale, told mediapersons that Chaudhary would join the NDA in the coming days. “Jayant Chaudharyji didn’t go to the Patna meeting (of Opposition parties). He is unhappy with Akhilesh Yadav, and may join us,” he said.
The RLD chief met a senior BJP leader and Union minister on Sunday, and the two-hour-long talks included the possibility of him joining the NDA, sources told The Indian Express.
Officially, the RLD denied a meeting between Chaudhary and a Union minister. “This is not true. Jayantji’s fight is for ideology and no meeting with the BJP has happened,” Kuldeep Ujjwal, RLD national general secretary, said on Monday.
If Jayant Chaudhary happens to change sides, it would be the second blow to Opposition unity after the split in the NCP on Sunday, with its top leaders joining the BJP-Shinde Sena government in Maharashtra.
However, RLD chief Jayant Chaudhary refuted these claims and said, “What can happen by just their saying things? My stand is clear…The public will give its mandate in 2024. Opposition parties met in Patna, I will attend the next round of meetings.”
RLD, SP ties severed?
The Rashtriya Lok Dal and Samajwadi Party have been allies since the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, where the two young leaders projected a picture of bonhomie.
However, the RLD-SP ties have been souring. Chaudhary’s announcement that he would not be present at the June 23 Opposition meeting in Patna was also seen as a fallout of this acrimony. Officially, though, the RLD said Chaudhary had a “pre-decided family programme” and hence could not attend the meeting.
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The differences between Akhilesh and Chaudhary first arose over a Rajya Sabha seat for the RLD leader, a source in the RLD said, IE reported.
The differences came to the fore during the urban local body elections in Uttar Pradesh in May, when the two parties fielded candidates against each other in several seats.
The move to the BJP, however, would not be without its set of issues for the RLD. The RLD’s main support base is the Jat community in western Uttar Pradesh, with the party recently running a campaign to bring on board Muslims and Dalits. An alliance with the BJP could alienate several prominent Muslim and Dalit leaders of the RLD.
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