Lucknow: Rashtriya Jankranti Party will merge with BJP on January 21 but its patron and former Chief Minister Kalyan Singh will not join the party due to technical reasons, UP BJP president Laxmi Kant Bajpai said on Saturday.
"On January 21, RJP chief Rajveer Singh will formally merge his party with BJP but due to technical reasons Kalyan Singh will not join the party," he said.
Greeting Kalyan on his birthday today, Bajpai said the former BJP leader was elected as an independent candidate from Etah Lok Sabha constituency.
Therefore, before joining BJP or any other party, he will be required to resign from the Lok Sabha when just over a year of its tenure is left, he said.
As of now, he will continue as an independent member and will be the BJP candidate in the next Lok Sabha elections, Bajpai said.
Kalyan, the former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister, said there are some tehnical hurdles in his joining BJP but a final decision in this regard will be taken after consulting senior party leaders.
Former BJP president Rajnath Singh said Kalyan may not be joining the party due to technical reasons as of now.
But, BJP will attain new heights with his support, he said.
PTI
