New Delhi:
After causing a week full of problem for the Bharatiya Janata Party, former Bahujan Samaj Party minister Babu Singh Kushwaha has said he won't go to BJP till he was cleared.
Speaking for the first time on the issue, Mr Kushwaha said, "I do not want the negative campaign against me to affect the BJP. Till I prove my innocence, I will keep my BJP membership in abeyance. I believe I can prove my innocence."
The BJP has been facing scathing attacks from friend as well as foes over Kushwaha's induction. "The same party that sold you Lord Rama's name for votes, was bought by Kushwaha," Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi said at a rally in Gorakhpur on Saturday.
The Kushwaha crisis has led to a divide within the party. Sources told NDTV that that fearing a credibility loss, senior leaders like Lal Krishna Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi, Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley have said no to backing 'criminal candidates'. In a desperate bid, the BJP asked Kushwaha to bail it out. Kushwaha obliged and wrote a letter to party chief Nitin Gadkari asking him to put his membership on hold till he's cleared of all charges as he did not want the BJP to suffer due to him.
The letter followed day-long poor attempts by the party to dismiss news of raging discontent within. While sources said some top BJP leaders voiced a no to campaigning in constituencies with tainted leaders or party hoppers, others called Kushwaha a crusader.
"We are neither giving him a ticket nor a post in the party," said OBC leader and the BJP's Uttar Pradesh chief, Vinay Katiyar. Mr Kushwaha's route into the BJP was reportedly paved by Mr Katiyar. The move was allegedly sanctioned by president Nitin Gadkari.
"It's possible that Mr Kushwaha may spill the beans, on the Congress as well as the Bahujan Samaj Party. And they are scared," said BJP Leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi.
The BJP, however, denies any rift over Kushwaha. While some top leaders told NDTV that they had expressed displeasure over Kushwaha's entry and its impact on party's campaign, other chose to say that the BJP has no men with tainted past on its list of candidates, hence there is no question of distancing themselves from the campaigning.
But the damage is done. Neither Kushwaha's letter nor the party's no to a ticket to him will stop the charges, including Kushwaha's buying his way into the BJP.
"Joining of Kushwaha against whom there are serious allegations of corruption, which are being probed by CBI in BJP raises suspicion. It seems that there was a financial deal of crores for his inclusion in the BJP... this should be probed by CBI," said Kalyan Singh. (Read)
Kushwaha's entry is threatening to demolish the BJP's build-up on the issue of corruption. LK Advani's took his anti-corruption yatra to Uttar Pradesh; two other senior leaders of the party, Rajnath Singh and Kalraj Mishra, travelled the length and breadth of the state advocating for a corruption free society. Kushwaha's entry has changed the equations. The issue of corruption still remains, but attacks, both from friends and foes, have intensified.
The Kushwaha crisis has demolished the BJP's campaign in the crucial state. Top campaign managers say that less than a month before polling starts, the strategy needs to be redrawn and its main plank - corruption - now needs a new spin or a silent burial.
Speaking for the first time on the issue, Mr Kushwaha said, "I do not want the negative campaign against me to affect the BJP. Till I prove my innocence, I will keep my BJP membership in abeyance. I believe I can prove my innocence."
The BJP has been facing scathing attacks from friend as well as foes over Kushwaha's induction. "The same party that sold you Lord Rama's name for votes, was bought by Kushwaha," Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi said at a rally in Gorakhpur on Saturday.
The Kushwaha crisis has led to a divide within the party. Sources told NDTV that that fearing a credibility loss, senior leaders like Lal Krishna Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi, Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley have said no to backing 'criminal candidates'. In a desperate bid, the BJP asked Kushwaha to bail it out. Kushwaha obliged and wrote a letter to party chief Nitin Gadkari asking him to put his membership on hold till he's cleared of all charges as he did not want the BJP to suffer due to him.
The letter followed day-long poor attempts by the party to dismiss news of raging discontent within. While sources said some top BJP leaders voiced a no to campaigning in constituencies with tainted leaders or party hoppers, others called Kushwaha a crusader.
"We are neither giving him a ticket nor a post in the party," said OBC leader and the BJP's Uttar Pradesh chief, Vinay Katiyar. Mr Kushwaha's route into the BJP was reportedly paved by Mr Katiyar. The move was allegedly sanctioned by president Nitin Gadkari.
"It's possible that Mr Kushwaha may spill the beans, on the Congress as well as the Bahujan Samaj Party. And they are scared," said BJP Leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi.
The BJP, however, denies any rift over Kushwaha. While some top leaders told NDTV that they had expressed displeasure over Kushwaha's entry and its impact on party's campaign, other chose to say that the BJP has no men with tainted past on its list of candidates, hence there is no question of distancing themselves from the campaigning.
But the damage is done. Neither Kushwaha's letter nor the party's no to a ticket to him will stop the charges, including Kushwaha's buying his way into the BJP.
"Joining of Kushwaha against whom there are serious allegations of corruption, which are being probed by CBI in BJP raises suspicion. It seems that there was a financial deal of crores for his inclusion in the BJP... this should be probed by CBI," said Kalyan Singh. (Read)
Kushwaha's entry is threatening to demolish the BJP's build-up on the issue of corruption. LK Advani's took his anti-corruption yatra to Uttar Pradesh; two other senior leaders of the party, Rajnath Singh and Kalraj Mishra, travelled the length and breadth of the state advocating for a corruption free society. Kushwaha's entry has changed the equations. The issue of corruption still remains, but attacks, both from friends and foes, have intensified.
The Kushwaha crisis has demolished the BJP's campaign in the crucial state. Top campaign managers say that less than a month before polling starts, the strategy needs to be redrawn and its main plank - corruption - now needs a new spin or a silent burial.
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