Kumar Vishwas, 49, is a founder member of AAP. (File)
Poet politician Kumar Vishwas has laughed off reports that he could join the BJP ahead of the Delhi election on February 8. Put the story on "repeat alarm", the former Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader tweeted on Wednesday.
That Kumar Vishwas is headed to the BJP and has been in talks with the ruling party has been reported several times over the past two years, but he has always denied it.
As a tweet was posted yesterday about a "strong buzzzzz" that Kumar Vishwas was "joining BJP today", he had a sarcastic response.
"I am abroad (Doha, Qatar) for an NRI event. If you say I can join from here? Why don't you run this report every week using a repeat alarm? Why strain your fingers unnecessarily," Kumar Vishwas tweeted.
Mr Vishwas, 49, is a founder member of AAP. He drifted away from the party over differences with Arvind Kejriwal but never made his exit official. In 2018, he was removed as AAP's Rajasthan in-charge after he publicly criticized his party leadership. His occasional praise for BJP leaders was also taken as a hint that he was leaning towards the BJP.
AAP is seen to be in direct contest with the BJP for next month's Delhi election. There is speculation that the BJP is keen on pitting Kumar Vishwas against Arvind Kejriwal.
In 2015, another founder member of AAP, Kiran Bedi, was projected as the BJP's chief ministerial candidate but the strategy backfired spectacularly. Not only did Kiran Bedi lose but the BJP was reduced to just three seats in the 70-member assembly, with AAP taking the rest.