Congress Leader RPN Singh’s BJP Cross Over Upsets Caste Math In UP, Another Leader, Daughter May Follow

The exit of RPN Singh from Congress was anticipated, though the party officially called him a “coward”. Now it is left with only three MLAs in UP. A former Union Minister, RPN was apparently upset over the raw deal from the Gandhi siblings even after wresting Jharkhand from the BJP in 2019. A Doon School alumnus, he had high expectations from fellow schoolmate Rahul Gandhi but got only disappointment even as juniors like Ajay Maken and KC Venugopal were promoted as AICC general secretaries, while he remained AICC-in-charge till his last day. His aspiration for a Rajya Sabha seat was dashed by Venugopal getting the slot. The current developments were in stark contrast to the times when RPN first got elected as Lok Sabha MP from Padrauna in 2009. Then he received a lot of attention from Rahul Gandhi and was made Minister of State in Manmohan Singh’s Government. As for his future in the BJP, it is not clear what it holds? His contesting the Padrauna assembly seat is not certain, as he had won from there 12 years ago. However, his BJP entry has unnerved another key contestant: Swami Prasad Maurya. The latest buzz is the Congress may also lose another prominent leader Pramod Tewari and daughter Aradhana Mishra in two.