Ritesh Pandey Exits BSP, Joins BJP After Meet With PM Modi; Mayawati Reacts

Days after days meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi over lunch along with seven other Opposition MPs in the Parliament canteen, Ritesh Pandey on Sunday quit Mayawati-led Bahujan Samajwadi Party (BSP) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Pandey, who was a Lok Sabha MP from Ambedkar Nagar, Uttar Pradesh, joined the BJP in the presence of Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak and other party leaders, including Uttar Pradesh in-charge Baijayant Jay Panda, general secretary Tarun Chugh and Uttar Pradesh unit chief Bhupendra Singh.

Pandey took to microblogging site X (formerly Twitter), to share his resignation letter.

Pandey resigned from the party’s primary membership saying that the party did not need him any longer as they neither called him for any meeting for a long time nor the party chief Mayawati spoke to him in a long time.

“For a long time, neither am I being called to attend party meetings nor has the party leadership spoken to me. I made numerous efforts to get in touch with and meet you (Mayawati) and the top leadership of the party but it did not yield any result,” Pandey said in his letter.

“During this time, I continuously met workers and supporters of other parties in my area and was also involved in various works going on in the constituency. Hence, I have come to the conclusion that the party does not need my service and presence,” he said.

“So, I do not have any other option apart from resigning from the primary membership of the party. The decision to break the relationship with the party is a difficult decision from the emotional point of view,” he added. Pandey further urged Mayawati to accept his resignation.

MAYAWATI REACTS

Soon after, BSP chief Mayawati responded to Pandey’s claims. Taking to X, she said the BSP was a movement dedicated to the mission of anti-Dalit icon BR Ambedkar. “That’s why this party’s ideology, functioning and selection of candidates is different from other capitalist parties,” she wrote.

In a swipe at Pandey, she said BSP MPs should introspect if they took proper care of the people of their area. “Did you devote enough for fieldwork?” she asked.

“Is it possible to give tickets to Lok Sabha MPs when they roamed around for their selfish goals and remained a part of negative discussions? The party’s interests are paramount,” she said, indicating that Pandey might not have gotten a BSP poll ticket if he stayed on.

Pandey’s decision came days after he met Prime Minister Narendra Modi over lunch, along with seven other Opposition MPs in the Parliament canteen. Sharing the pictures of their meeting on X, Pandey had said, “It was truly an honour to be invited by the Prime Minister @narendramodiji for lunch today and learn how he used his insights from the 2001 Bhuj Earthquake to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. What an insightful discussion – thank you for having us over!”

(With PTI inputs)