Former Congress Veteran Mahendra Malviya Gets Nominated By The BJP From Banswara (Photon on Facebook Mahendra Singh Malviya)

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has picked Mahendra Singh Malviya, the state Congress heavyweight, who left the party and joined the saffron party last month, for Rajasthan”s Banswara Lok Sabha seat. After shoring the saffron camp, Mr Malviya was heard saying that the party has to increase the voting percentage and for that the people have to vote in the name of Lord Ram. “Those who do not vote are against Lord Ram,” Hindi media house Dainik Bhaskar quoted him as saying.

Born in 1960 in Vagad, Rajasthan, Mr Malviya held several important portfolios in the Congress party after his foray into the party. He resigned as Congress MLA and party working committee member to join the saffron party last month. Notably, the former congress leader had started his political career with the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) before joining Congress later. While joining the BJP, Mr Malavia lauded the prime minister Modi and his developmental efforts. He also opined that the BJP has no alternative now as the Congress has lost its long-term vision. Mr Malviya had also cited the decision of the Congress party leadership not to attend the consecration ceremony of the Ram temple in Ayodhya as a reason to leave the party.

A four-time Congress MLA from 2008 to 2023 and former minister, Mr Malviya”s leaving creates a big vacuum in the grand old party while bolstering the BJP, given his influence in the tribal regions. He won the 2023 assembly election with a considerable margin from the Bagidora constituency.

However, the influential tribal leader has been given a ticket from the Banswara Lok Sabha constituency, which has a considerable tribal electorate. All the assembly segments of the constituency are reserved for the scheduled Tribes. He has also been accused of a scam worth Rs 15,000 crore by the former minister Arjun Singh Bamniya.