Former Congress minister and senior leader Kripashankar Singh announced he had quit the party. In the recent past, many Congress workers and leaders left the party and joined either BJP or Shiv Sena. Since 2014, BJP has gained lot of support from people. As Maharashtra and Delhi elections nearing by, Congress has no chance of getting any deposits in any of the two states, so these political leaders are trying to find safe place where they can win and retain their power, therefore BJP is best option for them. You might wonder why BJP is allowing these corrupt leaders to join the party, winning is main agenda, any leader joining a party will definitely bring some votes though it varies from the 100 to lakhs depending on the stature of the leader. BJP cannot deny any such votes and strengthening their party. Most of the times, politicians indulges in corruption because they get free hand from their high command. So there is nothing wrong in politicians (corrupt or not) joining in BJP from various other parties. There are many leaders joined BJP and kept aside, so that the nonsense they were creating being in opposition is now under control. So Kripashankar Singh and Urmila, they both are likely to join the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party soon, though he is reported to be in touch with even the Shiv Sena as well, aides indicated.
Urmila may not be entertained in Shiv Sena, as Priyanka Chaturvedi left Congress when Urmila was given ticket to contest and she was denied. Though, Sena is looking for strong candidates from all the parties where they want their party to be stronger and can go alone if needed. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Shiv Sena President Uddhav Thackeray had visited Singh’s Bandra residence to celebrate Ganeshotsav recently. However, Urmila has not revealed her future course of political action so far though speculation is rife that she may consider joining another party.
Singh – once billed as the Congress’ benign north-Indian face in Mumbai – has also expressed his differences with the Congress’ official stance opposing the recent decision of striking down of the Constitution’s Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir.
Among other posts, Singh was the Mumbai Congress President for a term and served as Minister of State for Home and held other portfolios in the former Congress-Nationalist Congress Party coalition government.
In 2011, Singh and some of his close family members had come under the scanner of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) in certain corruption-related cases after which he had to quit his ministerial post in mid-2012. Meanwhile, several prominent faces from the Congress and NCP are likely to join the ruling BJP-Shiv Sena this week as the countdown for the announcement of Maharashtra assembly elections starts.
Singh has been cleared by a special court of the allegations of the disproportionate assets as speaker of state legislative Assembly refused sanction to prosecute him under the Prevention of Corruption Act. Singh was a sitting legislator till October 2014. Both the refusals in response to the applications filed by the investigating agency Economic Offences Wing had come during the Congress-led government in June and October 2014. Some leaders in the Mumbai unit of the Congress insisted that there was more than “that-meets-the-eye” in political parlance. Singh was believably keen on fighting the Lok Sabha elections from one of the six seats in Mumbai. The BJP is also tapping the possibility of contesting him from Jaunpur in UP. If Kripashankar joins BJP then there would be one more corrupt count in BJP joining from opposition. No doubt Kripa has his vote bank and also connect with people, his joining BJP may help party gaining Uttar Pradesh votes.
Kripashankar—arrived in Mumbai in the ’70s as a potato/onion vendor. He used to reside in a chawl room with 25 other roommates. He struggled hard to achieve his dreams in this city. Besides being the Congress’s city unit president, he was the party MLA from Kalina suburb. But that election could come under a cloud too. The affidavit filed under Rule 4-A for the October 2009 Maharashtra assembly polls did not mention the duplex apartment under immoveable assets held by spouse; nor did it disclose four other properties either held by his wife or in which she has financial interest. This became the subject of an election petition filed by one of Kripashankar’s rivals from Kalina constituency—Chandrakant More, of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena—in the Bombay High Court. Nevertheless, the BJP is becoming a dumping ground for other party members.
BJP before the elections shouted on rooftops about Congress corruption and now it is six years and the government has still not arrested anyone. But the most corrupt politicians are given open arms welcome in the party. BJP is more or less the same as Congress minus the scams for now. By the next to next elections, BJP would have successfully absorbed the remainder of Congress, possibly even Rahul Gandhi and by then, if AAP or a brand new party manage to be the new face we are looking for, it will be time for change.
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