Upendra Kushwaha, RLSP chief, likely to join Congress-led grand alliance in New Delhi today

Former Union minister Upendra Kushwaha, who had recently broken ties with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), is likely to join the Congress-led grand alliance in the national capital on Thursday, according to sources. On December 10, Kushwaha resigned from the BJP-led led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and the Union council of ministers, accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi of reducing the cabinet to a "rubber stamp".

Speaking to news agency PTI, senior Rashtriya Lok Samta Party (RLSP) leader said that talks between his party and the alliance partners are almost final and an official announcement is likely to be made at a press conference on Thursday.

RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular) founder Jitan Ram Manjhi and a Congress representative are likely to be present during the announcement.  Opposition leader Sharad Yadav is also expected to attend the event.

Read | BJP ally RLSP chief Upendra Kushwaha resigns from Cabinet, hits out at PM Narendra Modi

There are also reports that Congress president Rahul Gandhi who went for a vacation to Himachal Pradesh, may return to Delhi by Thursday afternoon and take part in the joint press conference at about 4 pm.

"Right now, I can’t confirm about Rahul Gandhi’s presence, but many senior Congress leaders will be there," Congress in-charge for Bihar Shaktisinh Gohil told Times of India.

Giving a further boost to the speculations of Kushwaha joining the grand alliance, Congress leader Ahmed Patel on Sunday met him in Delhi. The UPA believes that Kushwaha's decision to join it will help it build momentum against the NDA in Bihar.

Read | Upendra Kushwaha’s supporters protest against Nitish Kumar's 'neech' remark; lathi-charged

Also, Kushwaha on Sunday dropped a hint about his decision to join the grand alliance, saying that it was "one of the many options" after quitting the NDA before him.

Besides BJP, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's JD-U and Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan's LJP are other constituents of the NDA. The saffron alliance had swept the Lok Sabha elections in 2014, winning 31 of the state's 40 seats.