Janata Dal (United) President Lalan Singh addressed a press conference in Patna on Friday. , Photo Credit: ANI
Ahead of the announcement of the Karnataka assembly election results, Janata Dal (United) national president Rajeev Ranjan alias Lalan Singh predicted that the BJP would “lose the election by a huge margin”. He further said that in the coming days, BJP will also lose the assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.
“In Karnataka, the BJP used all possible means and campaigned fiercely. Everyone saw the exit polls but the information I have says that the BJP will lose Karnataka by a huge margin, much more than the exit polls predicted. Slowly BJP is losing everything, the fort of BJP is now being broken. Wait for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. The BJP’s performance will be poor in the upcoming assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh as well. I have gone to Madhya Pradesh and talked to people there and based on my experience, I am confident that the BJP will lose there too,” Mr Singh said at the party office on Friday.
Exit polls have predicted the Congress emerging as the single largest party in the massive 224-member Karnataka Assembly, although there is a possibility of a hung House.
Mr Singh further asserted that in 2024, the BJP would be “wiped out” and alleged that Karnataka was the most corrupt state in the country.
Mr Singh also said that when Narendra Modi became the Prime Minister in 2014, he had promised to provide 2 crore jobs every year which never happened.
“From 2014 to 2022, it has been nine years… So 18 crore jobs should have been given to the PM but did it happen? The central government has banned all central recruitments. Recruitment is not happening now. It is not a question of not getting an alternative to Modi. An alternative is always provided by the people and the way it happened in 2014, an alternative to Mr. Modi will also arise in 2024,” Mr. Singh said.
Referring to two Supreme Court judgments on Thursday regarding the Maharashtra and Delhi governments, Mr Singh asked Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde to “resign on moral grounds”.
Mr Singh said the verdicts proved that the central government under the leadership of PM Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah “exercised undeclared control over all institutions”.
“We salute the Supreme Court of the country for saving the democratic system and restoring democracy in the country. The Supreme Court showed the mirror to those people behind the undemocratic system in the country. The apex court rightly asked that when an elected government is not empowered to function, how can the Lieutenant Governor control the officers? In Maharashtra also the role of the Governor was considered suspicious. Uddhav Thackeray resigned on moral grounds without conducting floor test. Now the time has come for Mr. Shinde to resign on moral grounds,” Mr. Singh said.
The Supreme Court on Thursday said that the Maharashtra governor’s decision to call a floor test amid a rebellion by a group of Shiv Sena MLAs was wrong. Similarly, the court gave the Delhi government the power to make laws and exercise control over bureaucrats deputed to their departments.
Asked about former JD(U) leader RCP Singh joining the BJP, he said Mr RCP Singh was an “agent of the BJP” and his joining the party was not surprising.
“We have been saying about Shri RCP Singh from day one that he is an agent of the BJP. Now it is confirmed. When RCP became the President of JD(U), there was a famous term called ‘RCP Tax’. Now, shouldn’t he disclose what is RCP tax? Nitish Kumar Yes blindly trusted the RCP and if it was involved in corruption then it should give an explanation,” Mr Singh asserted.
On the eve of Karnataka results, Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Prasad Yadav said, ‘Lord Bajrangbali is disappointed with the BJP.’