UP Polls: 7th BJP MLA Mukesh Verma quits BJP

Mr. Verma refused to talk about joining SP

Lucknow: After the flurry of the resignation of two Uttar Pradesh Cabinet Ministers and 6 MLAs of the BJP, the dark clouds of shock is still shrouded on BJP as seventh party MLA and backward caste leader Mukesh Verma quit the ruling party.

The storm of this movement came when BJP Cabinet Minister, Prasad Maurya resigned from the UP Govt. yesterday. Along with him, 3 MLAs quit.

Mukesh Verma, an MLA from Firozabad in western Uttar Pradesh, is also an OBC (Other Backward Class) leader like Swami Prasad Maurya and four others who have quit the BJP in the last three days.

In an official interview of NDTV, Mr. Verma said "Nobody listens to us." He refused to reveal whether he was moving to the Akhilesh's Samajwadi Party.

His resignation letter, mirroring all the others before, blamed the party for neglecting backward castes in Uttar Pradesh. But he went a step further by calling Swami Prasad Maurya "the voice of the oppressed" and "our leader" in his letter.

"The BJP government in the past five years did not pay any attention to Dalits, backward castes and minorities and disrespected people's representatives," Mr. Verma wrote in his resignation letter.

While talking to the media, the MLA said that "The state government has oppressed Dalits, backward castes. Far the reformers, unemployed youth and small and medium industries. Because of these policies, I am quitting the party. Swami Prasad Maurya is the voice of the oppressed and our leader. I am with him."

Indicating that all seven MLAs, including two ministers, are heading to the Samajwadi Party of Akhilesh Yadav.

Mr. Maurya, believed to be the prime mover in these exits, has yet to confirm his switch to the Samajwadi Party. He said yesterday that he would announce his plans on Friday.

Akhilesh Yadav, however, has been less coy, tweeting photos with the leaders soon after they announced their resignation.