Despite its long-standing rivalry, the Quami Ekta Dal (QED) on Tuesday announced its support to Congress candidate Ajay Rai in Varanasi where he is pitted against BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi.
QED president Afzal Ansari made the announcement after over a fortnight long discussions with the party leaders.Reacting to the development, the BJP alleged it was an “unholy alliance at the altar of vote bank politics”.Afzal Ansari’s younger brother Mukhtar Ansari had contested the last lok Sabha elections from Varanasi seat on BSP ticket and lost by nearly 17,000 votes against sitting BJP MP Murli Manohar Joshi.
Mukhtar is lodged in Agra jail in BJP MlA Krishnanand Rai murder case and is contesting the 2014 lok Sabha elections from Ghosi in Mau district of UP. He was to contest from Varanasi seat. But later the party withdrew his name to avoid division of the minority votes against Modi.Ajay Rai and Mukhtar Ansari have old rivalry and it is alleged that Mukhtar was involved in the conspiracy relating to the murder of Ajay Rai’s elder brother Awadhesh Rai in the city about a decade ago.
Earlier it was predicted that the QED could support Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidate Arvind Kejriwal citing Mukhtar-Ajay Rai rivalry. Sources say that the AAP had refused QED support because of party’s links with criminals.
Afzal Ansari said the Congress national leadership had approached him seeking his party’s support to its candidate Ajay Rai.Afzal said that the decision to support the Congress candidate was taken in a larger interest to prevent the communal forces to come to power.“We will actively campaign for the Congress during the elections in Varanasi, and will ask the people particularly the minorities to vote for Ajay Rai,’’ he said.But the sudden change in the decision of the QED to support Congress has created new equation in Varanasi, where polling is scheduled in the last phase on May 12.
Meanwhile, The BJP said the Congress party has sealed this pact as it was unable to counter the “massive support and popularity” of Modi in this holy city.“It now appears that Ajay Rai and QED are willing to even forge an unholy alliance of political convenience at the altar of vote bank politics,” BJP leader Nalin Kohli said.
Kohli, who is BJP’s national spokesperson for Varanasi lok Sabha seat, said Mukhtar Ansari is said to be an accused in murder of Ajay Rai’s brother and the Congress candidate now taking his support marks “a new low in the politics of convenience”.