The ghost of a humiliating defeat in the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections came to haunt the BJP once again. This time in the form of Maneka Gandhi.
The MP alleges financial mishandling during UP polls; RSS man under fire
NEW DELHI: The ghost of a humiliating defeat in the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections came to haunt the BJP once again.
Making a startling revelation at the party’s National Executive meeting, Party MP Maneka Gandhi said there had been a huge financial botching in the polls. Though she did not implicate anybody in person, the contents of her reference made it clear that her aspersions were aimed at the party’s RSS nominee, general secretary (organisation) Ramdas Aggarwal and those associated with him.
It is, perhaps, the first time that an RSS functionary has been accused, even if covertly, of financial goof up. In the UP poll management, the Sangh nominee was in-charge of disbursal of money to party candidates. She made a passionate appeal to the party leadership to probe the matter and make up for the errors that were committed in the election management in the state. She made it clear that until the party does a proper introspection and a post-mortem of all the issues that brought about the party’s debacle in UP, the BJP could not hope to make a comeback in the next parliamentary elections.
Though Maneka, a five time MP from Pilibhit, speaks rarely at party forums, she has the reputation of being a fearless orator. Others, including BJP’s poll mascot for the UP polls, Kalyan Singh, supported her saying the issues needed serious introspection.
She said the party candidates were only given one-third of the promised financial help, despite an assurance from the party president that the organisation would adequately take care of resources. The cash given to the candidate was too little and too late. One-third of the promised amount came only three days ahead of the polling date. She said when she had asked for financial help for the BJP candidates in her constituency, an associate of the RSS’s nominee, general secretary (organisation) told her that he would compensate it later.
“Where has all the money gone?” she harped again and again.
She rued that the party did not bother to consult any of the eight BJP MPs from the state that sends 80 MPs to Parliament before elections. In some cases, when the MPs offered ideas on candidate selection, they were overruled. She made a scathing criticism after UP unit chief, Kesrinath Tripathi, made a lacklustre poll analysis.
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