BSP MP Ritesh Pandey Switches Over To BJP

In another major ticket swap ahead of the general election, Lok Sabha MP Ritesh Pandey left the Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) today and joined the BJP. The 42-year-old holds the Ambedkar Nagar parliamentary seat in Uttar Pradesh. His father, Rakesh Pandey, is a Samajwadi Party MLA in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly.

Addressing the media after joining the BJP, Mr Pandey stated that he was inspired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of a developed India and had joined the party to strive toward that aim.

This morning, Mr Pandey posted on X the resignation letter he sent to BSP chief Mayawati. The letter praises her for allowing him to represent the party in Lok Sabha. “I received your guidance from the moment I entered public life through BSP. The party’s grassroots workers handheld me as I learnt to walk through the corridors of power,” the letter states.

It then goes on to address the elephant in the room. “For a long time, I am not being called for meetings. I am also not part of leadership discussions. I have tried numerous times to meet you and senior leaders, but to no avail. I have reached a conclusion that the party no longer needs my service and my presence. I am not left with any option other than resigning from the party’s primary membership. The decision to sever ties with the party is emotionally difficult,” he said.

According to NDTV sources, Mr Pandey communicated with BJP national general secretary Sunil Bansal. The BJP has apparently offered to run him for the seat he now holds.

Shortly after Mr Pandey announced his resignation, Mayawati started a thread on X that is interpreted as a response to the MP’s charges. The BSP, she claimed, was a “movement” dedicated to the cause of anti-Dalit icon BR Ambedkar. “That’s why this party’s ideology, functioning and selection of candidates is different from other capitalist parties,” she wrote.

In a jab at the outgoing MP, she stated that the party’s MPs should reflect on whether they cared for the people in their constituencies and gave them time.

“They must also introspect if they followed the party’s directions,” she said. “Is it possible to give tickets to Lok Sabha MPs when they roamed around for their selfish goals and remained a part of negative discussions? The party’s interests are paramount,” she said, indicating that Mr Pandey may not have got a BSP poll ticket if he stayed on.

Mr Ritesh Pandey, an alumnus of London’s European Business School, has been a prominent parliamentarian since being elected MP in 2019. He has articulated his party’s positions on several subjects. Surprisingly, his departure from the BSP comes just weeks after he joined several other Opposition MPs for lunch with Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Parliament canteen.

Mr Pandey had also shared pictures of the lunch meeting. “It was truly an honour to be invited by the Prime Minister @narendramodi ji for lunch today and learn how he used his insights from the 2001 Bhuj Earthquake to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. What an insightful discussion – thank you for having us over!,” he had said.