Denied ministerial berth, BJP MLA gives veiled warning to party brass

JAMMU: Annoyed at being denied ministerial berth, sulking BJP legislator from Marh Sukhnandan Choudhary on Sunday gave a veiled warning to the party leadership by asking his supporters to “take a decision about his future”.

Dinesh Manhotra

Tribune News Service

Jammu, May 15

Annoyed at being denied ministerial berth, sulking BJP legislator from Marh Sukhnandan Choudhary on Sunday gave a veiled warning to the party leadership by asking his supporters to “take a decision about his future”.

“What I am today is all due to your support, so I will accept whatever decision you take about my future,” Choudhary told his supporters during a rally, which was organised by locals at Marh.

“Although the BJP had given me a mandate in the Assembly elections, it was all due to your votes that I became a legislator. I will always remain indebted to you,” he told his supporters, who raised slogans in his favour and against the “injustice” being meted out to him.

Choudhary, a two-time MLA from the Marh segment, did not say anything against the BJP, but his supporters minced no words in attacking party leaders for the “injustice” done to residents of the segment.

“People are mounting pressure on me to accept their decision. As their representative, I am duty bound to accept whatever they decide about my future,” Choudhary said, while giving a veiled warning to the BJP leadership.

After the April 30 ministerial reshuffle, bickering within the BJP has intensified, as some party legislators, who were staking claims on ministerial berths, are openly speaking against the party. Hours after the Cabinet reshuffle, the BJP had faced a revolt. Dina Nath Bhagat, party legislator from the Chenani segment of Udhampur district, had dubbed the government as “anti-Dalits”, which was pursuing policies against the neglected and marginalised sections of society. On April 30, Choudhary had also expressed his anger by boycotting the crucial meeting in which Kavinder Gupta was elected BJP legislature party leader. Choudhary, who was minister in the PDP-BJP government headed by Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, was dropped from quota of BJP ministers when Mehbooba Mufti took over as the Chief Minister in April 2016.

Known for his strong base among the farming community, the BJP leadership is finding it difficult to placate Choudhary, whose supporters have been availing every opportunity to attack party leadership for adopting “anti-farmer” attitude.