With eyes set on UP, Singhal wants Uma back

Ashok Singhal of the VHP, who played a significant role in getting BJP MP Yogi Adityanath back into the party fold, is now keen to have Uma Bharati back in the BJP. He, however, also wants Bharati’s Bharatiya Jan Shakti (BJS) to withdraw all its candidates from the Uttar Pradesh polls in order to prevent the Hindu vote from being divided.

Singhal, the VHP’s international president, is believed to have already brought up the Bharati issue with the RSS and also with former prime minister Atal Behari Vajpayee. On Thursday, Singhal even went on record to compliment the BJS leader about her mass base. Bharati had earlier announced ambitious plans for her party in national politics.

The VHP leader has also praised Adityanath, who had earlier broken away from the party and decided to throw in his lot with the Hindu Mahasabha after the BJP initially refused to accommodate his supporters among the list of candidates. Despite Adityanath’s meeting with Advani, it was Singhal’s intervention that led to the reconciliation. Adityanath will now to join the VHP sants as they campaign, especially in eastern UP, to garner support for the BJP in the UP polls.

In Bharati’s case, Singhal wants the RSS to think of building bridges between the BJP and the former Madhya Pradesh chief minister.