Miffed with Lalu, Ram Kripal warms up to BJP

Rebel Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Ram Kripal Yadav met top Bharatiya Janata Party leaders in New Delhi amid indications that he would cross over to saffron ranks ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.

Yadav, a former close aide of RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav, met BJP President Rajnath Singh and party leader Ravi Shankar Prasad at the Delhi airport, giving rise to speculation that he would soon join the BJP.

An announcement to this effect is expected to be made in a day or so.

What remains to be seen is whether the BJP agrees to accommodate Yadav in the Pataliputra Lok Sabha seat of Bihar, a seat yoga guru Ramdev is said to have sought for one of his own aides.

Ram Kripal said he would comment on the developments only on Wednesday.

"I have met Rajnathji today (Tuesday). We had a good meeting. I will comment on the rest of the issues tomorrow (Wednesday)," Yadav told reporters when asked what will be his strategy and whether he was being given the Pataliputra ticket from Bihar by the BJP.

Ram Kripal resigned from all party posts of the RJD after Lalu Prasad, ignored his claim over Pataliputra ticket to field his daughter Misa Bharti from there.

Ram Kripal has been saying he has not yet quit the RJD and had only resigned from party positions. He has refused to give up his claim for the Pataliputra seat even after Misa Bharti approached him in a bid to placate

him.

Ram Kripal's closeness to the BJP is being attributed to Lok Janshakti Party President Ram Vilas Paswan, who is said to have played a key role in building bridges between him and the BJP.

Paswan himself junked a long-standing alliance with the RJD in Bihar recently to strike a pre-poll deal with the BJP in Bihar, which has 40 Lok Sabha seats.

Image: Ram Kripal Yadav quit from all party posts after a row over Pataliputra ticket