BSP rebel and former Mayawati confidant Swami Prasad Maurya may join BJP soon

Former Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) leader Swami Prasad Maurya is all set to join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Maurya, once a close confidant of BSP supremo Mayawati, is likely to make a formal switchover in New Delhi on August 8.

“Decks are clear for Maurya’s joining,” TOI quoted a senior party leader as saying.

The former leader of opposition in Uttar Pradesh Assembly had quit the BSP in June alleging corrupt practices by Mayawati in ticket distribution for the upcoming Assembly polls in the state.

The development is likely to escalate the tension between BJP and BSP in the backdrop of BJP’s state unit’s vice president Dayashankar Singh’s derogatory remarks against Mayawati.

In the last two months, Mayawati has seen several key leaders quitting the party levelling serious allegations against her.

Last month, former party MLA Ravindra Nath Tripathi and RK Chowdhary had announced their resignation from the party, accusing Mayawati of digressing from the path of Dalit ideology.