New Delhi:

Shahid Siddiqui, the national vice president of the Rashtriya Lok Dal, has resigned from the primary membership of the party and its post following the party’s merger with the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.

Mr Siddiqui, in a post on X, said that he resigned from the party as he cannot “silently watch undermining of all the institutions which have united and made India one of the great nations of the world.”

Respected Jayantji,

We have worked together for 6 long years and have respect for each other. I, for one, look upon you more as a younger brother than a colleague. We have stood shoulder to shoulder on significant issues and at creating an atmosphere of brotherhood and respect…

— shahid siddiqui (@shahid_siddiqui) April 1, 2024

“Yesterday I resigned from the position of National Vice President of RLD & its membership. Me and my family stood up against Indira’s Emergency & today can’t silently watch undermining of all the institutions which have united & made India one of the great nations of the world. My regards & best wishes to @jayantrld & other colleagues in the party,” he said on Monday.

Jayant Chaudhary, after months of speculation, joined the NDA after the centre conferred his late grandfather and former prime minister Chaudhary Charan Singh with the Bharat Ratna.

The BJP which eyes Western UP with optimism, to achieve its ambitious target of 370 seats on its own, despite facing setbacks in the last elections, wants to consolidate its base among the Jats, which are the RLD’s core base, and place it ahead in at least seven seats in the region.

The Jat community has significant influence in a dozen Lok Sabha and around 40 Assembly seats in West UP. They are estimated to make up between 10 and 15 per cent of the population in some 15 districts but are socially dominant, vocal, and have the capacity to build a political atmosphere.

In 2014, the BJP secured 24 out of 27 seats in the region, which dwindled to 19 in 2019, with all eight seats going to the SP-BSP combine.

Mr Siddiqui, however, wrote a separate post for Jayant Chaudhary and hailed his “commitment to secularism and constitutional values”.

“Respected Jayantji, we have worked together for 6 long years and have respect for each other. I, for one, look upon you more as a younger brother than a colleague. We have stood shoulder to shoulder on significant issues and at creating an atmosphere of brotherhood and respect among different communities. No one can doubt your commitment to secularism and the Constitutional values we both cherish. From the time of your late grandfather, Bharat Ratna Choudhary Charan Singhji, your late father Ajit Singhji, and yourself–all of you, as indeed the party you created have stood for these values,” Siddiqui said.

He further said that the RLD becoming a part of the NDA puts him in a bind and a piquant situation.

“I have struggled long and hard in my mind and heart but find myself unable to be associated with an alliance headed by the BJP. I am aware of your political compulsions and am not in a position to advise you otherwise. But speaking for myself I am constrained to withdraw myself from this ongoing campaign, as indeed from the RLD,” the former RLD leader said.

“Kindly accept my resignation. As always wishing you all the very best in the forthcoming elections,” he added.
Lok Sabha polls will be held in seven phases beginning April 19. Uttar Pradesh, which sends the maximum number of MPs, 80, to Parliament, will vote in all seven phases.
With political dynamics shifting in the state, the BJP is spearheading a robust alliance, encompassing parties like RLD, SBSP, Apna Dal (S), and Nishad party bolstering its position.
On the other hand, while Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav aligns with the opposition bloc, Mayawati embarks on the electoral journey solo.
Voting for phases one and two will be held on April 19 and April 26. Next, the state will once again poll in phases three and four on May 7 and May 13. The Uttar Pradesh electorate will also vote in phases five, six and seven on May 20, May 23 and June 1 respectively. The votes will be counted on June 4.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Meerut:

Lashing out at the opposition INDIA bloc, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said the attacks on him will not stop the fight against corruption and action will be taken against those involved in graft irrespective of their status.

“When Modi is fighting the battle against corruption with full strength, these people have formed the INDI(A) alliance. They think they will intimidate Modi, but for me, my Bharat is my family and I am taking steps to protect it from the corrupt,” the Prime Minister said addressing his first rally in Uttar Pradesh after the announcement of the Lok Sabha election schedule.

PM Modi’s counter-offensive came as the stalwarts of the INDIA bloc held a rally at the Ramlila Maidan in New Delhi in support of AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal and JMM leader Hemant Soren, arrested on graft charges, and accused the prime minister of adopting dictatorial policies.

The Prime Minister said some people are rattled because he is taking action against corruption.

“I am fighting a big battle to save my country from the corrupt. That is why they are behind bars today and not getting bail even from the Supreme Court,” PM Modi said.

“The election is a fight between two camps. On one side you have the NDA committed to eradicating corruption, on the other side is the INDI(A) Alliance focused on protecting corrupt leaders. You have to decide whether corruption should be removed or not,” he said at the rally in Meerut.

“Corrupt people should listen… no matter how many attacks you make on Modi, this is Modi, he is not going to stop. No matter how big the corrupt person is, action will definitely be taken. The one who has looted the country will have to give it back. This is Modi’s guarantee,” he said.

Raising the Katchatheevu island issue, PM Modi accused the Congress and the opposition alliance of trying to harm the country’s unity and sovereignty.

“Today, yet another anti-India conduct of Congress has been exposed. The island of Katchatheevu, which lies between India and Sri Lanka and is extremely important from the perspective of national security, was given away by Congress after independence.

“India is still paying for the misdoings of the Congress government,” he said.

The 2024 Lok Sabha election is not just for making a government but to make a ‘Viksit Bharat’, PM Modi said, adding his government was preparing the roadmap for the next five years.

PM Modi praised Meerut as the land of “revolution and revolutionaries” that gave leaders like Chaudhary Charan Singh to the nation.

“Our government has already started preparations for the third term. We are making a roadmap for the coming five years. Work is going on rapidly on what major decisions we have to take in the first 100 days.

“In the last 10 years, you have seen only a trailer of development, now we have to take the country much further,” he said.

The prime minister said he has lived in poverty and “that is why Modi understands very well the sorrow of every poor, the pain of every poor, the suffering of every poor”.

“So I made schemes to address every concern of the poor. We have not only empowered the poor, but we have also given them back their self-respect,” PM Modi said.

Rashtriya Lok Dal president Jayant Chaudhary, who recently joined the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance, shared the dais with the prime minister at the rally.

Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Yogi Adityanath, Haryana Chief Minister Naib Singh Saini along with veteran actor Arun Govil of TV serial ‘Ramayan’ fame, who is the BJP candidate in the Meerut Lok Sabha seat, were present at the rally.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)