Senior BJP leaders have petitioned state party chief Keshav Prasad Maurya and UP in-charge Om Mathur that `outsiders’ joing the BJP recently should not be given preference over dedicated workers.
In a two-page letter signed by 128 leaders from different regions of UP, have suggested that `genuine’ workers should not be ignored during ticket distribution.
“It has happened previously when outsiders were given preference. This should not happen this time when the BJP is on the upswing,” the petitioners said.
The fear manifests from the fact that around a dozen sitting legislators from other parties have joined the BJP in recent months. These leaders are from different political hue including the Samajwadi Party, BSP, Congress and Rashtriya lok Dal. It is believed that these sitting law makers have joined the BJP on the condition that they would be given tickets.
The fear deepend further when three party hoppers were given space in the BJP’s 27-member election core committee that includes Union ministers, BJP in-charges, RSS functionaries and senior office-bearers.
Swamy Prasad Maurya and Brijesh Pathak (both from BSP) and Rita Bahuguna Joshi (Congress) are part of that committee.
State BJP president Keshav Prasad Maurya said that sitting legislators from other parties have joined the BJP without any condition.
“We have not assured anyone tickets. If they can win election as per feedback from our party workers and survey, we will give them ticket,” he told ‘The Pioneer’ over telephone. “For us our workers are supreme. Those who has reared the party with their blood and sweat will not be ignored,” Maurya said.
A senior leader however said that the party would be compelled to field these turncoats as the party did not have enough ‘jitau’ (winning) candidates. “We had won 47 seats the Assembly out of the total of 403. So, in over 350 seats there is a possibility of accommodating leaders,” he said.