After failing to stitch a grand alliance of opposition parties ahead of the Gorakhpur and Phoolpur by-polls, the Congress has now decided to rope in some senior leaders of the state across party lines into its fold aiming to counter the BJP in the 2019 Parliament elections.
Sources said that the Congress move could pose a serious problem for Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party as several of their leaders were either unhappy with the party chiefs or had left the parties searching for a platform to start a fresh innings.
“Former number two in the BSP, Naseemudeen Siddiqui, who was expelled by Mayawati, along with half a dozen former MPs of BSP and SP was in touch Congress president Rahul Gandhi and an announcement about their joining could be made very soon,” revealed a senior Congress leader.
He said that Rahul Gandhi has chalked out a road map to give the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi a run for their money just as the party did in Gujarat recently. Sources further said that besides Siddiqui, Congress is inching closure to reach an understanding with senior SP leader Shivpal Singh Yadav. A senior Congress leader claimed that Shivpal was also in touch with Rahul Gandhi and he could split the SP and merge the faction with the Congress some months before the next Parliament poll.
Shivpal has strong differences with SP prersident Akhilesh Yadav since the latter removed Mulayam Singh Yadav from thee post and took charge himself. Despite a major rout of the SP in 2012 Assembly poll, both Akhilesh and Shivpal were yet to settle their differences and revive the SP.
The Congress leader claimed that the joining of Siddiqui and Shivpal would not just put the party in a fighting situation but would also upset the BJP which is hoping to get a second term at the Centre after 2019. Besides the two leaders, the Congress was also in touch with at least a dozen former MPs of SP, BSP and even BJP and was likely to attract them to join the party after offering a ticket for 2019 Parliament elections. A senior Congress leader claimed on Monday that after the AICC session due in mid-March, Rahul Gandhi could roll out a new plan for revival of the party in all the states including Uttar Pradesh.