Upendra Kushwaha resigns as Union minister, likely to quit NDA

Union minister of state for human resource development Upendra Kushwaha, today, resigned from the Union Council of Ministers. and is all set to resign from the Union Council of Ministers on Monday, news agency ANI said.

The Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP) chief is likely to quit the BJP-led NDA alliance as he is not happy with the BJP over its seat sharing formula in Bihar for the 2019 elections.

He is likely to addressa press conference shortly to make his stance clear on the future strategy of his party.


The development comes a day when the opposition parties are meeting to discuss a strategy to take on the BJP-led NDA in the Lok Sabha elections in 2019.

Earlier in the day, the Minister told the media that he will not participate in the NDA meeting at Parliament House complex slated to be held at 4 p.m.

"I will not participate in the NDA meeting," he told reporters.

Kushwaha has been critical of the BJP since it announced that the saffron party and the Janata Dal-United (JD-U) would contest 17 seats each in Bihar.

Since the seat sharing announcement, Kushwaha has been critical of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.

As per the tentative arrangement, the RLSP was to be given two seats, one less than the number it had contested in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls.

(With inputs from IANS)