The meetings are being seen as Chautala’s attempt to gain visibility in the national political arena.
NEARLY A week after he met Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, former Haryana chief minister Om Prakash Chautala on Monday met former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda and ex-UP CM Mulayam Singh Yadav to discuss farmers’ issues and the formation of a Third Front.
The meetings are being seen as Chautala’s attempt to gain visibility in the national political arena.
Chautala, who was serving a 10-year prison term in a teacher recruitment scam case, was released from Tihar jail early last month after the Delhi government passed an order granting a six-month special remission to those who have served nine-and-half years of their 10-year prison sentence to decongest jails in view of the pandemic.
Days after his release from jail, Chautala had announced that he will go to every state before September 25 to contact leaders of the Opposition there to seek an alternative to the BJP at the national level. “We will announce a Third Front on September 25 itself,” he had said.
The Chautala-led INLD has plans to celebrate his father and former deputy PM, late Chaudhary Devi Lal’s birth anniversary on September 25.
According to the INLD, Chautala meetings with Deve Gowda and Mulayam at their residences were a courtesy call. “Talks were held regarding the issues of farmers and formation of Third Front. They (Deve Gowda and Mulayam Singh) appreciated the efforts of INLD supremo for formation of Third Front while offering every possible help for the same. They also accepted the invitation for the event of September 25,” said a statement issued by the INLD after the meetings.
According to the statement, Deve Gowda and Mulayam also recalled their association with Chaudhary Devi Lal: “the entire life of Devi Lal has been a source of inspiration for them”. Abhay Chautala’s elder son Karan was also present during these meetings.
Earlier, when Nitish Kumar had met Chautala, JD(U) national spokesperson K C Tyagi had said: “Nitish shared a great political bond with Chautala’s father Choudhary Devi Lal. Both come from a strong socialist background. It was more of a courtesy meeting than any attempt at political overtures.”
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