JD(U) wants bigger say in NDA

NEW DELHI: In a move that should cause some concern in the BJP camp, the JD(U) has kicked off attempts to form a pressure group within the NDA. It announced its intent by forging an alliance with the Apna Dal for the coming round of assembly polls.

The JD(U) has also opened channels of communication with parties such as the JD(S), which has an alliance with the BJP in Karnataka, and a few NDA components, such as the Akali Dal and the Biju Janata Dal.

The idea behind the entire exercise, sources within the party said, was to enhance the bargaining power of these parties vis-a-vis the BJP in view of its rapidly diminishing clout.

JD(U) president Sharad Yadav on Monday went public with the party’s decision to tie-up with the Apna Dal, a Kurmi-dominated outfit which pockets of influence in and around the Allahabad-Phulpur belt.

While he maintained that his party remained a part of the NDA “as of now”, its alliance with the BJP was restricted to the national level.

“The components of the NDA were free to strike an independent path in the states, as had been the case in the past in Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Tamil Nadu,” Mr Yadav maintained. He also disclosed that he and Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar would be undertaking a daylong trip to the eastern UP districts of Varanasi, Mirzapur and Jaunpur on June 25 to address joint rallies with Apna Dal president Sonelal Patel.

While Mr Yadav was gung-ho about the alliance’s prospects in UP, there were not many political observers who were willing to place their bets on them. Despite having been active in the state’s polity for quite some time, the Apna Dal has been unable to make much headway.

In the ’02 assembly polls, it contested 227 seats across the state, but managed to win only three and its poll percentage was a dismal 2%.

Among its winners was Atiq Ahmed, a prominent history-sheeter, who’s involved in several criminal cases of serious nature.

It fared even worse in the ’04 Lok Sabha polls, in which it fielded its candidates from 57 of the 80 constituencies. It failed to open its account in the state, bagging a measly 1.36% votes, and its candidates forfeited their deposits in each of the 57 seats.

More recently, it joined hands with former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Uma Bharti for the by-election to the Rae Bareli Lok Sabha constituency in an attempt to upstage the BJP, but could rustle up 6,201 votes only.

The exercise mounted by the JD(U), political observers feels, has more to do with exerting pressure on an emaciated BJP to yield more ground to its alliance partners.

The JD(U) chief, who’s the mastermind behind the gameplan, pointed out that he had once again initiated efforts to bring the various Janata Party splinter groups together. In this context, he identified the JD(S) headed by former prime minister H D Deve Gowda and the faction led by former Karnataka deputy chief minister Siddaramaiah.