Congress defectors strike gold by joining BJP; get post in Manipur and Goa
NEW DELHI: Even as Congress’ electoral fortunes continued to remain poor, almost two dozen leaders who joined the BJP — many on election eve — gained ministerial posts in Manipur and Goa, even as those in Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh awaited their turn.
While BJP skillfully used its political muscle to reinforce the ‘Congress-Mukt Bharat’ war cry, political pole-vaulters have infested BJP state governments with the ‘Congress DNA’.
Manipur chief minister Nongthombam Biren Singh was a senior Congress leader and minister, before he quit the party to join the BJP over differences with former CM Ibobi Singh.
Three more ministers in the BJP’s Manipur ministry, dependent critically on allies, are ex-Congressmen. L Jayakumar Singh was a minister in Okaram Ibobi Singh regime; Shyam Kumar Singh, a former deputy speaker, was elected on Congress ticket before defecting to Ibobi Singh regime; Shyam Kumar Singh, a former deputy speaker, was elected on Congress ticket before defecting to BJP; Thongam Biswajit was disqualified from the last assembly when he defected to Trinamool Congress, from Congress, before travelling to BJP on election eve to become an MLA and minister.
Manipur’s new deputy chief minister Y Joykumar Singh has an even more interesting tale. After he retired as the police chief a few months back, he sought membership in the Congress, was refused, joined the BJP and found himself denied a ticket. On poll-eve, Singh joined PA Sangma-founded NPP to win, bargained with BJP and has become the deputy CM.
In Goa, the Manohar Parrikar government is critically depending on three MLAs of the Goa Forward Party, all made ministers. GFP leader Vijai Sardesai was a Congress MLA who quit the party in 2012 when he was denied a Congress ticket.
His colleagues Jayesh Salgoankar and Vinod Palekar were district leaders of Goa Congress till recently. The trio joined GFP, pitching an anti-BJP plank. AICC leaders did not field candidates against the three to signal an electoral understanding, while Goa PCC chief Luizinho Falerio, who has personal differences with Sardesai, unilaterally handed out a Congress nomination to a local leader to fight against Sardesai.
The victorious Sardesai extracted revenge by refusing to back Falerio for CM and demanded Pratapsinh Rane be made CM. Before the Congress could decide, the trio crossed over to BJP and became ministers.
Rane’s legislator son, Viswajeet, who quit Congress on Thursday, too may follow the same route as BJP is keen on engineering defections from the Congress and check GFP’s bargaining power.
In Uttarakhand, 13 erstwhile Congress leaders — ministers and MLAs — defected to BJP to provide a major leg-up for the BJP in its fight against the Harish Rawat-led Congress.
They included Satpal Maharaj, Harak Singh Rawat, Yashpal Arya, Subodh Uniyal, Pratap Batra, Pranav Singh Champion, Rekha Arya, Shailesh Mohan Singh, Umesh Sharma, Kedar Singh Rawat and ex-CM Vijay Bahuguna’s son Saurabh. Many of them are now bargaining for plum ministerial posts. Given the poor health of Congress, BJP focused more on catches from SP and BSP in UP.
Yet among a few Congress defectors who rode the BJP wave are former PCC chief Rita Bahuguna and Dhirender Singh, Rahul Gandhi’s lieutenant during the Bhatta Parsaul land agitation.
While BJP skillfully used its political muscle to reinforce the ‘Congress-Mukt Bharat’ war cry, political pole-vaulters have infested BJP state governments with the ‘Congress DNA’.
Manipur chief minister Nongthombam Biren Singh was a senior Congress leader and minister, before he quit the party to join the BJP over differences with former CM Ibobi Singh.
Three more ministers in the BJP’s Manipur ministry, dependent critically on allies, are ex-Congressmen. L Jayakumar Singh was a minister in Okaram Ibobi Singh regime; Shyam Kumar Singh, a former deputy speaker, was elected on Congress ticket before defecting to Ibobi Singh regime; Shyam Kumar Singh, a former deputy speaker, was elected on Congress ticket before defecting to BJP; Thongam Biswajit was disqualified from the last assembly when he defected to Trinamool Congress, from Congress, before travelling to BJP on election eve to become an MLA and minister.
Manipur’s new deputy chief minister Y Joykumar Singh has an even more interesting tale. After he retired as the police chief a few months back, he sought membership in the Congress, was refused, joined the BJP and found himself denied a ticket. On poll-eve, Singh joined PA Sangma-founded NPP to win, bargained with BJP and has become the deputy CM.
In Goa, the Manohar Parrikar government is critically depending on three MLAs of the Goa Forward Party, all made ministers. GFP leader Vijai Sardesai was a Congress MLA who quit the party in 2012 when he was denied a Congress ticket.
His colleagues Jayesh Salgoankar and Vinod Palekar were district leaders of Goa Congress till recently. The trio joined GFP, pitching an anti-BJP plank. AICC leaders did not field candidates against the three to signal an electoral understanding, while Goa PCC chief Luizinho Falerio, who has personal differences with Sardesai, unilaterally handed out a Congress nomination to a local leader to fight against Sardesai.
The victorious Sardesai extracted revenge by refusing to back Falerio for CM and demanded Pratapsinh Rane be made CM. Before the Congress could decide, the trio crossed over to BJP and became ministers.
Rane’s legislator son, Viswajeet, who quit Congress on Thursday, too may follow the same route as BJP is keen on engineering defections from the Congress and check GFP’s bargaining power.
In Uttarakhand, 13 erstwhile Congress leaders — ministers and MLAs — defected to BJP to provide a major leg-up for the BJP in its fight against the Harish Rawat-led Congress.
They included Satpal Maharaj, Harak Singh Rawat, Yashpal Arya, Subodh Uniyal, Pratap Batra, Pranav Singh Champion, Rekha Arya, Shailesh Mohan Singh, Umesh Sharma, Kedar Singh Rawat and ex-CM Vijay Bahuguna’s son Saurabh. Many of them are now bargaining for plum ministerial posts. Given the poor health of Congress, BJP focused more on catches from SP and BSP in UP.
Yet among a few Congress defectors who rode the BJP wave are former PCC chief Rita Bahuguna and Dhirender Singh, Rahul Gandhi’s lieutenant during the Bhatta Parsaul land agitation.
