Team News Riveting
Lucknow, January 20
Priyanka Maurya, the poster girl of AICC General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra’s “ladki hoon lad sakti hoon” campaign, today joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
She was Uttar Pradesh Mahila Congress Vice President and face of the campaign with which Congress is contesting the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections eyeing women votes. Maurya’s switch over is seen as a huge embarrassment for the Congress and its campaign.
Sources said that Priyanka Maurya was denied a ticket by the Congress despite she being the women face of the party.
“A slogan was raised saying ladki hoon, lad sakti hoon. But it remained only a slogan and did not come to reality as a girl was denied a chance to fight the elections. I had worked hard in my assembly constituency. I put in my heart and soul thinking that I would help people. But the Congress party had pre-decided the candidate and I turned out to be just another pawn for them. Party’s manifesto ‘Shakti Vidhan’ which depicts my picture on the front is where the party used me to attract the votes of women, OBCs,” she said.
Even as the electioneering in the poll-bound state is accelerating, the BJP flaunted three prized catches in last two days. Besides Maurya, Pramod Gupta—the brother-in-law of Samajwadi Party patron Mulayam Singh Yadav, also joined the BJP today. On Wednesday, Mulayam’s daughter-in-law Aparna joined the BJP.
Sources said that BJP had been in constant touch with Mulayam Singh’s brother Shivpal Yadav, in attempts to woo SP chief’s immediate family members.
