Patna: While Patna Sahib BJP MP Shatrughan Sinha is praising the RJD, another dissident BJP MP and cricketer-turned-politician Kirti Azad is singing tunes in favour of Congress chief Rahul Gandhi.
In a statement issued on Thursday, he said under the able leadership of Rahul Gandhi, the Congress was on the rise and the BJP leadership was aware of this danger.
On the other hand, Azad targeted Narendra Modi. "What happened to the Rs 15 lakh he had promised to give after being elected? What happened to the jobs he promised to the youths?" he asked, pointing at the steep hike in fuel prices. He declared his support for Shatrughan Sinha. "I will follow him where ever he goes," Azad said.
The Darbhanga MP also stressed that he would contest from his old constituency in 2019 Lok Sabha polls. "The situation created for me in the BJP has made me look for options and I will be contesting on a national party ticket," he said, stressing that he had taken the decision after speaking to his followers in the constituency.
Ever since Kirti Azad lobbed the corruption charge bomb at finance minister Arun Jaitley and was suspended by the party, it became clear that the former cricketer's time in the BJP was limited. His wife, Poonam Azad, has already joined the Congress.
Azad's relationship with the Congress is quite old, as he happens to be the son of former chief minister of Bihar Bhagwat Jha Azad.
However, Kirti Azad's wish to contest from the Darbhanga parliamentary seat is going to be a difficult one to fulfil. The traditional rival of the three-term Lok Sabha member from Darbhanga has been RJD leader and former Union minister A.A. Fatimi.
"I do not see how the RJD can be expected to give up the Darbhanga parliamentary seat when we have a very strong candidate and there is a substantial Muslim population in the constituency. They also point out that Maithil Brahmins who have a large presence in Darbhanga have traditionally voted for the BJP. Besides, in 2014, Kiriti Azad was very unpopular among the local electorate. He managed to win because of the Modi wave," added the RJD leader.
