Exodus from BJP continues as third minister, two more MLAs resign in UP

The exodus of BJP's backward caste leaders in Uttar Pradesh continued as yet another Dalit minister Dharam Singh Saini, the third in three days, resigned from the Yogi Adityanath cabinet and the saffron party on Thursday.

Besides Saini, two more legislators of the BJP Mukesh Verma, an OBC, and Bala Prasad Awasthi resigned from the primary membership of the party accusing it of ignoring the interests of the Dalits, backward classes and farmers.

As many as three BJP ministers and eight MLAs, most of them hailing from the OBC community, have quit in the past few days triggering panic within the party and altering its electoral scene in the key state.

Also Read | Mass desertions 'force' BJP to revisit its electoral strategy in Uttar Pradesh

Interestingly, Saini, who held the Ayush portfolio and who was considered to be close to Swami Prasad Maurya whose resignation from the cabinet on Tuesday had triggered this exodus, had refuted reports of leaving the saffron party barely a day ago.

Stung by a spate of resignations by senior OBC and Dalit leaders ahead of the polls, the BJP had launched a massive damage control exercise. Union Home Minister Amit Shah and other senior BJP leaders had spoken to Saini and some other defecting MLAs to persuade them to remain in the party but their efforts did not bear fruit.

UP BJP leaders admitted that they expected some more resignations in coming days though they sought to make light of the desertions. ''It won't make a difference for us in the forthcoming polls,'' said a senior BJP leader while speaking to DH.

Some other party leaders, however, said that they had not expected such large-scale desertions ahead of polls and admitted that it could hurt BJP's electoral prospects.

That the desertions had triggered panic among UP BJP was evident when the central leadership on Wednesday indicated that it would retain most of the sitting MLAs. The BJP has also, in a bid to keep its allies in good humor, agreed to give more seats to Apna Dal and Nishad Party.

Sources close to Swami Prasad Maurya said that at least five to six BJP MLAs could resign in the next couple of days. Maurya, in a tweet compared himself to a mongoose, who would 'swallow' the RSS and the BJP, who he likened to a snake.

Check out DH's latest videos