"Want To Save Jharkhand": BJP MLA Jai Prakash Bhai Patel Joins Congress (image-facebook/JaiPrakashBhaiPatel)
In what appears to be a major setback in Jharkhand for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Jai Prakash Bhai Patel, the BJP MLA from Mandu seat, joined the Indian National Congress (INC) on Wednesday as the Lok Sabha elections approach.
Son of the late Tek Lal Mahto, one of the founder members of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) party, Patel stated that the BJP’s ideologies no longer aligned with those of his fathers. Patel also praised the Bharat Nyay Jodo Yatra led by Rahul Gandhi, clarifying that he was under no pressure. Citing the reason behind his departure from the BJP, Patel said that he wished for a better future for his state of Jharkhand and wanted to fulfil his father’s wishes.
Expressing his confidence in the INDIA alliance, he said that the alliance will win all 14 seats in Jharkhand.
Patel joined the Congress in the presence of AICC-in-charge Jharkhand Ghulam Ahmad Mir, Jharkhand minister Alamgir Alam, Jharkhand Congress chief Rajesh Thakur, and Pawan Khera, the Congress head of media and publicity.
On Patel’s switch to Congress, Ghulam Ahamad Mir said that several leaders from different political parties in Jharkhand and West Bengal were in touch with Congress, indicating that there might be more political leaders joining the party.
The Mandu assembly constituency falls under Jharkhand”s Hazirabagh Lok Sabha segment. Patel had also served as an MLA of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM). In 2019, shortly before the general elections, Patel quit JMM, joined the saffron party, and contested elections on the BJP ticket.
Speculations are rife that Congress could nominate Patel from the Lok Sabha constituency of Hazirabagh in the upcoming general elections.
“I don’t care about my post. I want to save Jharkhand,” said Patel, as quoted in The Hindu.
मेरे पिता टेक लाल महतो जी ने झारखंड को सवांरने का सपना देखा था, जिसे पूरा करने के संकल्प के साथ मैं BJP में शामिल हुआ था। अफसोस कि मैंने अपने पिता के सपनों को उस दल में नहीं पाया।
राहुल गांधी जी की “भारत जोड़ो न्याय यात्रा” से झारखंड की जनता में उनके प्रति रुझान बढ़ा है।… pic.twitter.com/Vtv2UOWTXa
— Congress (@INCIndia) March 20, 2024
LIVE: Eminent personality joins the Indian National Congress at the AICC HQ, New Delhi. https://t.co/8oLrUhjyUV
— Congress (@INCIndia) March 20, 2024
