Samajwadi women wing chief joins BSP

Lucknow, March 14 (IANS) The Samajwadi Party suffered a jolt Saturday when its national women's wing chief Ranjana Bajpai quit to join her party's sworn foe -- the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP).

Attributing her decision to the 'neglect of Brahmins in the Samajwadi Party', she pointedly accused Samajwadi Party general secretary Amar Singh of having 'completely hijacked the party'.

•   E-mail Article
•   Printer Friendly
•   Text-Size    

Her exit came within days of Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav's abrupt move to axe her as the candidate for the Sitapur Lok Sabha seat.

Talking to mediapersons, Bajpai said: 'Samajwadi Party has turned into a private limited company run by Amar Singh with film heroes and heroines and industrialists as its key constituents.'

Asked why she was stating this now, she fumbled before answering: 'Well, I could see what was happening in the party but one learns from experience. It took me some time to understand things.'

She added: 'I felt humiliated and insulted when I was suddenly replaced as the party candidate, much after I had put in a lot of effort.'

She said she was 'really impressed with the respect and honour given to Brahmins in BSP. It is not just Brahmins. The BSP has been extremely considerate and respectful to other castes too.'

When a scribe asked her if she was hopeful of getting BSP ticket, BSP state president Swami Prasad Maurya butted in: 'We have entrusted her with the coordination of as many as eight Lok Sabha constituencies. I am sure you know the importance of coordinators in our party.'

He added: 'Ranjana Bajpai fully subscribes to the party's ultimate goal to see Mayawati as the country's next prime minister.'

Originally a staunch Congress leader, she switched loyalty to the Samajwadi Party in July 2002. Her estranged husband, Ashok Bajpai, who was also a former Congress member, had joined BSP about a year back.