‘Sidelined’ Rita Bahuguna Joshi all set to ditch Cong for BJP

The Congress in Uttar Pradesh may receive a major jolt in the coming days, as former UP Congress Committee president Rita Bahuguna Joshi, say sources, is all set to join the BJP.

Ms Joshi is said to be upset at being “sidelined” by the party, and has not been given any major responsibility. She was not even asked to join any of the yatras that the Congress recently took out in the state.

The party sources, however, said that with Sheila Dikshit already named as the party’s chief ministerial candidate, two Brahmin women could not be made to lead the party at the same time.

Ever since reports of her joining the BJP started doing the rounds, Ms Joshi switched off all her phones and went incommunicado. Surprisingly, the former UPCC chief, who is normally very active on the social media, did not deny the reports on Facebook or Twitter, which gave further credence to the rumours.

UPCC spokesman Surendra Rajput, though, denied that she is quitting the Congress, but did not say why Ms Joshi did not issue a denial. Ms Joshi, 67, is the Congress MLA form the Lucknow Cantt seat and is said to be keen on a ticket for her son Mayank Joshi too.

Sources said she is feeling uncomfortable ever since the SP announced the candidature of Aparna Yadav, younger daughter-in-law of Mulayam Singh Yadav from the Lucknow Cantt seat that she presently holds.

Her position in the Congress came under cloud after her brother Vijay Bahuguna engineered split in the Congress in Uttarakhand and defected to the BJP with nine MLAs. Though Ms Joshi distanced herself from her brother’s decision, her detractors used the opportunity to question her loyalty.

“The party leadership can’t afford to trust her in this situation but she has not been treated shabbily. She has been asked to work in her constituency and make efforts to win it back,” said a senior UPCC leader.

Ms Joshi is the daughter of former UP chief minister Hemvati Nandan Bahuguna, who was known for his opposition to the RSS ideology, and her brother Vijay Bahuguna was chief minister of Uttarakhand till Harish Rawat replaced him.

Ms Joshi, however, began her career with the Samajwadi Party and was the mayor of Allahabad before she joined the Congress in 2001. She was appointed the president of the All India Mahila Congress and then UPCC president in 2007.