Within one week of the DSP killing, political alignments in Uttar Pradesh are beginning to change.
Exactly a decade after his severed his ties with the BJP, Raja Bhaiyya — accused in the murder of the DSP in Pratapgarh — is discovering new friends in the BJP.
BJP MP Yogi Adityanath has already defended Raja Bhaiyya and has blamed UP minister Mohammed Azam Khan for conspiring against the Raja.
The BJP MP has categorically stated in Delhi that Raja Bhaiyya was a victim of a political conspiracy and is being framed in the murder of DSP Zia-ul-Haq. The Yogi did not hesitate to underline the fact that the Samajwadi government had dropped Raja Bhaiyya from the ministry as a part of its Muslim appeasement plan.
State BJP president Laxmikant Bajpai refused to demand immediate arrest of Raja Bhaiyya and said that the law should be allowed to take its own course. He also criticised the media trial in the case.
According to highly placed sources, BJP president Rajnath Singh is likely to make an unannounced trip to Lucknow in the coming days and will pay a short but significant visit to Raja Bhaiyya.
“Mr Rajnath Singh is expected to visit Ambedkar Nagar where a Hindu activist Ram Babu Gupta was shot dead, allegedly at the behest of the local SP MLA, and the police have not even registered a FIR against the accused. He may also pay a visit to Raja Bhaiyya — after all, the two leaders continue to share a warm rapport and also have family relations. However, this will be a purely personal visit and no politics should be read into it,’ said a senior BJP leader.
The BJP, according to sources, is aware that Raja Bhaiyya may not immediately jump the political fence and join the saffron brigade, but the party wants to send a discreet but clear message that its doors are open for the Raja.
The party is obviously eyeing the Thakur votes for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections and is aware that the recent incidents have, once again, consolidated Thakur votes in favour of Raja Bhaiyya.
“He is being perceived as the wronged one and the intense media trial that targets Raja Bhaiyya is adding to the sympathy factor. The BJP could get the advantage of Thakur votes in UP if it plays its cards well,” said a party functionary.
Sources further informed that several BJP leaders, including MPs and MLAs, have spoke to Raja Bhaiyya on telephone and have expressed their solidarity with the beleaguered politician.