When the Sun enters Capricorn and millions plunge into the freezing waters to take a holy dip and mark the beginning of the Mahakumbh in Allahabad, veteran leader Kalyan Singh will merge his Jan Kranti Party into the BJP and plunge into a fresh chapter in his political career.
After being kept hanging for almost four months, it is now confirmed that Mr Kalyan Singh will return to the BJP on January 21, a week after the auspicious period in the Hindu calendar begins.
The final decision in this regard was taken at a meeting held in Delhi on Sunday evening in which Mr Kalyan Singh met BJP president Nitin Gadkari and other senior BJP leaders.
According to sources, Mr Singh’s return will be formally announced at a function in Lucknow in which Jan Kranti Party president Rajvir Singh, son of Mr Kalyan Singh, will announce the merger of his party into the BJP. Mr Kalyan Singh had formed the Jan Kranti Party in January 2010 after he left the BJP in 2009.
While Mr Kalyan Singh will not yet formally join the BJP since he is an independent member of the Lok Sabha but he is likely to be appointed party vice-president as the Lok Sabha term draws to a close.
His son, Rajvir, will be given a Lok Sabha ticket while his daughter-in-law Premlata will be fielded by the BJP in the next UP Assembly elections. Other supporters of Mr Kalyan Singh will also be adjusted accordingly.
Mr Kalyan Singh, who served two terms as Uttar Pradesh chief minister — 1991-92 and 1997-99 — had left the party for the
first time in December 1999 and returned again before 2004 Lok Sabha elections. He contested and won the 2004 polls on the BJP ticket from Bulandshahr but
left the BJP again in 2009 following a dispute over Lok Sabha ticket distribution.