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Sharat Pradhan in Lucknow
Naresh Agarwal, the sacked Uttar Pradesh minister, has joined hands with Mulayam Singh's Samajwadi Party.
Speaking to rediff.com, Agarwal said, "I had an one-hour chat with Mulayam Singh on Saturday morning following which we have entered into a pact to jointly expose the misdeeds of the BJP in Uttar Pradesh."
He claimed the BJP was anti-people and anti-farmer.
He said his ouster would adversely affect BJP's support base among the Vaishya community.
Naresh Agarwal is from the politically powerful Vaishya community, which is regarded as the traditional support base of BJP.
"The BJP ditched Ram Prakash Gupta, the former chief minister of Uttar Pradesh and they have done the same thing to me. The Vaishya community would be up in arms against the saffron brigade," said Agarwal.
Asked if his sacking would affect his political career, he said, "It will not affect my political career and now my mission is to show the BJP its place in UP."
However, nobody from the Samajwadi party was either confirming or denying Aggarwal's claim of an alliance with SP.
Meanwhile, the three Loktantrik Congress Party ministers, who were seen with Aggarwal till morning, were seen at the chief minister's residence in the afternoon.
Asked to comment on his presence at the CM's residence, Baccha Pathak said, "I am here in my capacity as a minister. And in the morning I went to meet Naresh Agarwal by virtue of the member of LCP."
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