JOIN USNobody should take Dr Kirorilal Meena, an independent MP from Karouli and a scheduled tribe leader, lightly.
Meena, a former BJP rebel, says the time is ripe for the third front in Rajasthan. But except him, nobody has joined his front till now.
Meena himself is already in election mode. He has hired a helicopter, and has been going places to address meetings a year ahead of the Assembly elections in the state. He is now known among the people as ‘helicopter neta’.
He says he would announce his third front on February 28 in Mewar which has a sizable number of ST seats.
Dr Kirorilal Meena ditched former chief minister Vasundhara Raje during last Assembly elections because of her alleged ‘arrogance’ and aligned with Congress. But he fell out with chief minister Ashok Gehlot also.
Now, he says he will allow neither Raje nor Gehlot to become the chief minister again. “Both the Congress and BJP are corrupt,” he says. The nation is looking for alternatives, according to him.
The Meena leader is eyeing the 25 reserved seats for the scheduled tribes and is waiting for possible allies like the Bahujan Samaj Party or some fringe parties to form a strong bloc of about 30 to 35 seats to bargain for position in the 200 member Assembly. He says none of the mainstream parties would be able to form the next government without his help.
Meena has become the envy of many leaders as he moves in a helicopter which only the mainstream parties can usually afford during elections. Perhaps he is preparing the ground well before the election commission steps in asking for an account of expenses.