Sitting Congress MP Naran Rathwa And His Son Switches To BJP: BJP calls it "Historic" (Photo from X C R Paatil @CRPaatil)
In yet another blow to the Congress party ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha election, Congress Rajya Sabha MP and former union minister Naran Rathwa joined the BJP nearly two months before his tenure in Rajya Sabha expires. His Rajya Sabha MP”s tenure would expire on April this year.
The tribal leader and his son Sangramsinh switched to the BJP along with many of their supporters today (Tuesday) in Ahmedabad. He was one of the Gujarat”s veteran Congress leaders and a five-time Lok Sabha MP. The former Congress leader also served as a Minister of State for Railways in the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government in 2004. During the 2009 general election, the BJP candidate Ramsinh Rathwa defeated him. The state BJP chief C R Paatil called the development a historic event, in a post shared on social media .
Mr Rathwa’s son Sangramsinh had contested the 2022 Gujarat assembly election in Congress ticket from Scheduled Tribe (ST)-reserved Chhota Udepur seat and faced defeat against the BJP candidate.
Blaming the Congress leadership for not providing support and responsibilities for the youth, Mr Sangramsinh said that the Congress has been unable to rebuild after several defeats.
He also said that it was with a heavy heart that he decided to leave the Congress party as he had been associated with it for years. However, noting the debilitation of the party and alleging faulty ticket distribution, the former youth Congress leader said that the party is breaking down year after year while getting more disorganised.
Sangramsinh also cited the Congress party’s decision to skip the Ram temple inauguration as an example of “poor decision-making” from the party leadership. Noting that it was the Congress who broke the locks of Babari Masjid, Mr Mr Sangramsinh said that the party failed to “capitalize on such moments.”
However, Mr Rathwa and his supporters were welcomed by the Gujarat BJP chief C R Paatil. Mr Paatil presented them with saffron scarves and caps at the party headquarters.
Taking to X (formerly Twitter), the Gujarat state chef wrote that today is a historic day as more than ten thousand workers joined the BJP, hailing it as a “trust in Modi guarantee.” “Today, a large number of Congress workers and social leaders including Shri Naranbhai Rathwa, his son Shri Sangram Rathwa, Shri Dharmendrabhai Patel, a senior leader of the Congress and a tribal community leader, joined the party by donning the mantle of the Bharatiya Janata Party at the State Office Shri Kamalam. More than ten thousand workers joined the Bharatiya Janata Party together today, a historic event. This is trust in Modi and trust in Modi guarantee, welcome everyone to the party,” Mr Paatil wrote.
આજે પ્રદેશ કાર્યાલય શ્રી કમલમ ખાતે કોંગ્રેસનાં સિનિયર અને આદિવાસી સમાજનાં નેતા શ્રી નારણભાઇ રાઠવા, એમનાં પુત્ર શ્રી સંગ્રામ રાઠવા, શ્રી ધર્મેન્દ્રભાઇ પટેલ સહિત મોટી સંખ્યામાં કોંગ્રેસનાં કાર્યકર્તાશ્રીઓ અને સામાજિક આગેવાનશ્રીઓને ભારતીય જનતા પાર્ટીનો ખેસ પહેરાવી પાર્ટીમાં જોડ્યા.… pic.twitter.com/6AgUoMJJyI
— C R Paatil (@CRPaatil) February 27, 2024
The Congress has been dealing with the outflow of several of its leaders ahead of the 2024 general election.
