Congress leader Sangram Thopate likely to join BJP soon
Former Congress MLA Sangram Thopate is set to join BJP soon, having met Amit Shah. His official joining is expected next week in Mumbai.
Former Congress MLA from Bhor assembly constituency, Sangram Thopate, is likely to join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) very soon. Sangram Thopate recently met union home minister Amit Shah in Pune.
Leaders from both the BJP and Congress on condition of anonymity confirmed the development. Sangram Thopate is likely to officially join the BJP next week in the presence of the party’s national and state-level leadership in Mumbai.
Historically, the Thopates have been Congress loyalists. Sangram Thopate’s father, Anantrao Thopate, was a six-term MLA from the same assembly constituency and former minister in the state government.
Earlier, there was political rivalry between Anantrao Thopate and Nationalist Congress Party (SP) leader Sharad Pawar in Pune district. During the last Lok Sabha (LS) elections however, Pawar visited Anantrao Thopate at his Bhor residence and appealed to the latter to help his daughter and now Baramati MP Supriya Sule in the election.
Whereas Sangram Thopate tasted defeat in the last assembly election and grew restless. The BJP even promised to help him with respect to his sugar factory. Sources confirmed Sangram Thopate’s proximity to chief minister Devendra Fadnavis in the last couple of months.
