Kushwaha meets Bhujbal in Pune, hints at joining ‘Mahagathbandhan’

Will now do everything we can to defeat the NDA, says Upendra Kushwaha

The Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP) chief Upendra Kushwaha, who resigned from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s cabinet last week, has hinted that he may join the Mahagathbandhan (the grand alliance- coalition of political parties in the opposition) led by the Congress. Kushwaha visited Pune on Wednesday and held talks with senior Nationalist Congress Party leader Chhagan Bhujbal.

Chhagan Bhujbal (R) and Upendra Kushwaha (L) during a press conference at Bal Gandharva Ranga Mandir in Pune on Wednesday. (Pratham Gokhale/HT Photo)

Later, Kushwaha spoke to the media, where he said that the party has three options before it which includes joining the grand alliance. “First is to contest the elections on our own, second is to join the grand alliance and third is to be a part of the third front. While we were a part of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), we will now do everything we can to defeat the NDA,” said Kushwaha.

Kushwaha resigned as the minister of state for human resource and development and accused Prime Minister Modi of reducing the cabinet to a “rubber stamp”. In Pune, Kushwaha said that he and Bhujbal have been close associates and he visited Maharashtra to wish the NCP chief Sharad Pawar on his birthday on Wednesday. NCP is already a part of the Congress-led grand alliance with Pawar playing a key role in engaging with other regional parties for joining the alliance. Later speaking at a function to celebrate Pawar’s birthday, Kushwaha said, “Pawar is the most senior politician in India today. He has helped me in my times of struggle in politics. His service to this nation is invaluable.”

“My association with Bhujbal is more than a decade-old and I have taken his guidance. I came here to meet him,” said Kushwaha.

On why he quit the NDA, the RLSP leader said that the central government changed its agenda from ‘vikas’ (development) to divide the society into various segments. “We joined hands with the NDA under the impression that their agenda was ‘vikas’. However, the BJP was only interested in their development,” said Kushwaha.