GUWAHATI: With a number of Congress leaders gradually joining the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), in Assam, Pawan Singh Ghatowar is the next Congress leader who is likely to join the BJP.
A highly placed source in the BJP, talking to G Plus, revealed that Pawan Singh Ghatowar might join the BJP along with his wife and son.
“The talks are in process. Nothing has been finalised. But Ghatowar and family are interested in joining the BJP. It may take some time,” informed the source.
It was being gauged by political observers that Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) was working towards enticing Congress leaders and converting them into the BJP fold, but the RSS rubbished the observation.
A top RSS leader of Assam, talking to G Plus under condition of anonymity said, “RSS is not persuading Congress leaders to join the BJP. It is the BJP who are taking decisions themselves.”
The leader said that RSS works for BJP during general elections and therefore BJP wins, but other than that RSS never works to convert members from other parties into the BJP fold.
“They (BJP) take our permission when they want,” said the leader expressing that Bhubaneshwar Kalita’s permission was not taken from RSS and they do not have any information about Ghatowar either.
The leader claimed that across India, BJP mostly loses elections during by-election and not general elections because during general elections the RSS works 24X7 at the grassroots level for BJP’s victory. But the same does not happen during by-elections.
Similarly, when any leader from a different party joins the BJP, the decision is mostly taken by BJP itself; it is only sometimes that the RSS opinion is sought.
There are many Congress leaders who are planning to join the BJP but again they are apprehensive of not getting tickets during elections, expressed the RSS leader. Some leaders are even restricted by RSS as they might harm the sentiments of the sevaks and the Sangh as a whole, the leader said.
