After the Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi held talks with the RLD chief Ajit Singh and his son and MP Jayant Choudhary in London this week, ice appears to have finally been broken for the way ahead for the two parties to jointly contest the 2012 UP Assembly elections and the “imminent” induction of the jat leader in the Union Cabinet.
Mr Gandhi, who had flown to London on June 18, is learnt to have held talks with the RLD chief and his son to hammer out the nitty-gritty of the two parties coming together for the UP Assembly polls, which is less than two years away now.
“Mr Ajit Singh also held talks with the Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh in the US. The talks centred around the issue of the merger of the RLD with the Congress,” stated a senior RLD functionary.
The RLD camp is now buzzing with the talks of the “imminent” induction of Mr Ajit Singh, after he told senior leaders “kuch achcha hone wala hai (something good is going to happen)”. The RLD chief will be back in Delhi from the US this weekend, after which he is likely to hold another round of talks with Mr Digvijay Singh, following which an official announcement is being expected by the RLD leaders.
“While Mr Ajit Singh is likely to join the UPA as a Cabinet minister, another party leader, possibly his son Jayant Choudhary, will get the portfolio of the minister of state,” added the party functionary.
Though Mr Jayant Choudhary was earlier opposed to the merger of his party with the Congress, he has changed his views after his meeting with Mr Gandhi.