BJP MLA defiant, says he is only raising people’s issues

Lucknow: BJP's Charkhari MLA Brij Bhushan Rajput on Saturday remained defiant and unrelenting despite being reprimanded by UP BJP chief Pankaj Chaudhary for blocking the cavalcade of Jal Shakti minister Swatantra Dev Singh and issuing statements about party leaders on social media."People are supporting me and not the big minister (Swatantra Dev), who was also the state unit chief," Rajput told TOI, a day after he was summoned by Chaudhary, who asked the MLA to exercise restraint and put out his views only on the party forum instead of speaking publicly.
"I am only raising people's issues. I have been doing it in the Vidhan Sabha for the past two years. If my grievances are not supposed to be taken up, then the very purpose of the Assembly stands defeated," he said.Rajput is said to have been served a show cause notice by Chaudhary, the Bundelkhand MLA maintained that he has not yet received it from the party.This was somewhat different from the past, when erring party functionaries were issued notice by the disciplinary committee of the UP BJP unit.Rajput claimed he was merely an MLA and not as powerful as Swatantra Dev Singh, who, he said, has strong party backing. "I have not demanded any special privileges or any promotion. My job is to highlight the problems of the people and the existing corruption in the execution of the schemes. And that's exactly what I did and would continue to do in future," he said.Sources said Rajput is choosing confrontation over conciliation by doubling down even after being summoned by the state unit chief. Analysts said that by claiming that "people are supporting me", Rajput wants to project himself as a grassroots representative standing up against entrenched power structures within his own party.At the organisational level, the UP BJP appeared to be walking a tightrope. Interestingly, the absence of a showcause notice from the public domain, sources said, indicates the party's reluctance to escalate the matter, which might alienate a sitting party legislator while triggering similar acts by other MLAs.At the same time, analysts said, Chaudhary's advice to restrict grievances to internal party platforms underlines BJP's priority of maintaining discipline and public cohesion, particularly in an election-sensitive state like Uttar Pradesh.