Mumbai: A senior NCP leader of Vidarbha , Datta Meghe was inducted into the Congress on Wednesday at the AICC headquarters in New Delhi.
Along with Meghe, rebel BJP MP also from Vidarbha, Haribhau Rathod, was also scheduled to join the Congress , but his induction has been delayed.
Rathod, who was earlier an aide of senior BJP leader Gopinath Munde, had remained absent at the time of the confidence vote and thus helped Congress-led UPA government . A leader of nomadic tribes, he is reportedly seeking reelection to the Lok Sabha on a Congress ticket. The Congress is in election mode and wants to strengthen its base in Vidarbha which was once its bastion. Meghe was unhappy with the way he was treated by NCP. His son, Sagar, was elected to the state legislative council on a BJP ticket.
Meghe also tried to persuade another senior NCP leader and former Nagpur city unit president Girish Gandhi to switch over to the Congress. However, Gandhi resisted the move. Meghe, who has a sizeable base in Vidarbha , will be a loss to the NCP but it remains to be seen whether he would be able to transfer his mass base to the Congress. There are indications that Meghe, who is known to be a highly resourceful person, may be fielded to the Lok Sabha from Wardha.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Mumbai/Senior_NCP_man_joins_Congress_/articleshow/3387756.cms
