Lucknow: Ahead of the assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh, when all the parties are trying to strengthen themselves, the voters of the Congress party and its big leaders are continuously leaving the party. In Uttar Pradesh, the families and their leaders associated with the party for generations are constantly parting ways with the party.
The result of this is that Congress has already started appearing on the back foot in the elections. As the big face of the Congress party in Purvanchal, RPN Singh on Tuesday announced his decision to leave the Congress party to join the BJP. Singh, who carried forward the family legacy of politics, was a second-generation leader associated with the Congress party.
Earlier, the second-generation leader Jitin Prasada had also left the Congress and joined the BJP. On the other hand, in Banaras too, Lalitesh Pati Tripathi, the leader of the fourth generation of Congress's strong political house, said goodbye to Congress. With generations of leaders leaving the party, Congress is getting weaker.
Kunwar RPN Singh
Kunwar RPN Singh is a well-known face of the Congress Party in Uttar Pradesh. He was associated with the Congress party since his childhood because his father CPN Singh was an MP and was also the Minister of State for Defense in the Indira Gandhi government. However, Singh has now broken the family tradition.
RPN Singh left Congress and joined BJP. Talking about RPN's political career, he was the state president of Youth Congress from 1997 to 1999 and was also the secretary of the All India Congress Committee. He became an MP in the 15th Lok Sabha and was made Minister of State for Road Transport and National Highways in the Congress Cabinet.
Apart from this, he was also the Minister of State for Petroleum and the Union Minister of State for Home. He was an MLA from Kushinagar's Padrauna assembly from 1997 to 2009. After that, he became an MP from the same area. At present, he was the state in-charge of Jharkhand and also the national spokesperson.
Also read: UP Polls: RPN Singh heaps praise on Modi, while Congress calls him 'coward'
Lalitesh Pati Tripathi
Lalitesh Pati Tripathi's exit from Congress in Purvanchal was a hot topic of discussion in Uttar Pradesh politics. Tripathi was the fourth-generation leader of his family, to be a part of the Congress, but in the end, he left the Congress and joined the Trinamool Congress, accusing the party of neglect. Lalitesh broke the century-old connection of his family with Congress.
It was from the Majhwan seat of Mirzapur that Lalitesh's great-grandfather Kamalapati Tripathi contested elections. It was from here that he made his journey from MLA to the chair of the CM of Uttar Pradesh. Lalitesh Tripathi himself entered the fray and became MLA from Madihan in 2012, he also contested the Lok Sabha elections, but when he started feeling neglected in the Congress, Lalitesh broke this tradition and joined the Trinamool Congress.
Jitin Prasada
Jitin Prasada, who was recognised as a Brahmin face for the Congress in Uttar Pradesh, also left the party, citing neglect of the Congress leaders as the reason behind his exit. Jitin's family was also associated with the Congress party for many years. Jitin was a second-generation leader who was associated with Congress.
Jitin Prasada's father was Jitendra Prasada who was very close to Indira Gandhi. Jitendra Prasada's political career began in 1970 as a member of the Legislative Council. He became an MP from Shahjahanpur in the fifth Lok Sabha. After this, he won elections from here in 1980 and 1984 as well. He became a Rajya Sabha MP in 1994 and reached the Parliament in 1999 as well.
He also became a Union Minister in the Congress government. After this, his son Jitin Prasada's political career also started. In 2001, Jitin Prasada became the secretary of the Indian Youth Congress. In the year 2004, Jitin won the Lok Sabha elections from Shahjahanpur Lok Sabha seat and reached Parliament.
Also read: Will have friendly fight with BJP in UP, says JDU National general secretary
In 2008, he became the Union Minister of State for Steel in the Congress government. He contested elections from Dhaurahra in the year 2009 and won again. After this, he was made the Minister of Road Transport and Highways in the Congress government. From 2011 to 2012, he was the Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas and from 2012 to 2014, the Ministry of Human Resource and Development was with him.
Later, the position of Jitin Prasada started weakening along with the Congress party. Although the party made him in-charge of the West Bengal assembly elections, Prasada began to realize that the party wanted to end his political career by making him in charge of a state like West Bengal. After this, Jitin took a different path and joined the Bharatiya Janata Party and became a cabinet minister in the Yogi government of Uttar Pradesh. His departure caused a big setback to the Congress party.
Overall, these families, who are considered very important for the Congress party in the politics of Uttar Pradesh, have lost their connection with the party. Due to their departure, the Congress party may have to suffer a big loss in the assembly elections. In UP, the political message of such leaders leaving the party is also not going well at all. The credibility of the party is also being questioned.
