Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and Uttar Pradesh Minister Jitin Prasada, who was earlier in the Congress party, on Wednesday took a swipe at his former partymate Kapil Sibal after the latter filed his nomination for the Rajya Sabha as an Independent supported by the Samajwadi Party.
Taking to Twitter, Jitin Prasada wrote, "How’s the “Prasad” Mr. Sibal !"
The Uttar Pradesh Minister quote tweeted Sibal's old tweet after he had dumped the Congress party last year.
"Jitin Prasada Joins BJP. The question is will he get “ prasada “ from BJP or is he just a ‘catch’ for UP elections ? In such deals if ‘ideology’ doesn’t matter changeover is easy," the former Union Minister had tweeted.
Meanwhile, announcing that he had resigned from the Congress last week, Kapil Sibal today filed his nomination for the Rajya Sabha as an Independent supported by the Samajwadi Party.
Sibal, whose exit is another jolt for the electorally battered Congress, said his ideology is related to the party he has been with for three decades.
The former Union minister went to the Uttar Pradesh assembly premises to file his papers with SP chief Akhilesh Yadav, Ram Gopal Yadav and other senior leaders.
A prominent member of the G23, which had sought an organisational overhaul in the Congress, Sibal's tenure as Congress' Rajya Sabha MP ends in July.
"I have filed the nomination as an Independent candidate. I thank Akhileshji for supporting me," Sibal told reporters here.
"I resigned from the Congress on May 16 and am no longer a senior Congress leader," he said.
On his leaving the party, Sibal said, "I had a deep relation with the Congress. It was for 30-31 years. This is not a small thing. I joined the Congress because of Rajivji (former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi). You must be thinking, how one can go from the Congress after 31 years. There must be something (for leaving the party).. that my heart is facing. Sometimes such decisions are to be taken." "But my ideology is related to that of the Congress. I am not far away from the Congress and its ideology. I am with the sentiments of the party," he said.
Asked whether his ideology now will be of the Samajwadi Party, Sibal said, "I am with all inclusive ideologies. Be it of the SP, RLD, Mamataji (West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee) or Stalin (Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin)."
