Jayant Chaudhary broke ranks with the INDIA bloc and joined the NDA
Using a chess analogy to take a veiled swipe at former ally Akhilesh Yadav, Rashtriya Lok Dal chief Jayant Chaudhary today said "they were offering us the queen, and wanted to kill the king." Mr Chaudhary, who switched from the Opposition's INDIA bloc to NDA last month, was in Uttar Pradesh's Kairana Lok Sabha constituency to canvass for BJP candidate and sitting MP Pradeep Chaudhary.
Addressing the gathering, he said, "You know me well. You understand my gestures even before the words come to my lips. There should be a strategy in public and political life. That is a leader's job."
"You must be playing chess. There is a move in which the opponent shows that he is weak and then checkmates you. The party we were with wanted to do something like that. They were offering us the queen and wanted to kill the king," he said with a smile. "We have no regrets. They have a responsibility to their party. I have a responsibility to my people."
Mr Chaudhary also countered Mr Yadav's recent jibe, in which he said seven seats are more than two -- the RLD is contesting two constituencies as part of its seat-sharing with the BJP; Mr Choudhary was reported offered seven seats in the INDIA alliance. "Don't explain to us the maths of six or seven," he said, and referred to the Hindi idiom, "ek aur ek gyarah" that means strength lies in unity.
The BJP governments at the Centre and in Uttar Pradesh, Mr Chaudhary said, were working tirelessly for farmers and the poor and every section of the society was benefiting. "Every RLD leader will work to ensure the BJP candidate's victory," he said.
Mr Chaudhary's RLD holds considerable sway in the Jat community, which can influence poll outcomes in many western UP seats. Eye on this key voter base, the BJP made several moves to reach out to the community in the build-up to the general election. The Bharat Ratna announced for former Prime Minister Chaudhary Charan Singh, a Jat leader and Jayant Chaudhary's grandfather, was another crucial move. Soon after the announcement, Mr Chaudhary said, "Dil jeet liya".
Ever since, the former allies have been taken swipes at each other. Earlier, Mr Yadav had referred to Mr Chaudhary's old remark in which he said, "Am I a chavanni (penny) that I will turn like this?" In a veiled swipe, Mr Yadav said, "It is possible that the Prime Minister may ask who this chavanni is." Responding to the barb, Mr Chaudhary had used a wrestling analogy to say that he had not turned but taken down his opponent. "He (Akhilesh) knows a little bit about wrestling. I also know a little bit," he had said.