Congress leader Padmaja Venugopal, the daughter of former Kerala chief minister K Karunakaran, on Thursday joined the BJP here, saying she was not happy with the grand old party for several years and it lacked a strong leadership.
Venugopal joined the BJP in the presence of the senior party leaders, including its Kerala in-charge and former Union minister Prakash Javadekar.
Addressing a press conference with the BJP leaders at the party headquarters here, Venugopal said she was so happy to have joined the BJP but a "little bit tense also" because she stood with the Congress for several years.
"I decided to quit because I was not happy with the Congress for so many years, especially since the last assembly elections in the state (Kerala)," she told reporters.
{{/usCountry}}"I decided to quit because I was not happy with the Congress for so many years, especially since the last assembly elections in the state (Kerala)," she told reporters.
{{/usCountry}}Venugopal said that she tried to reach out to the Congress top brass several times to discuss her grievances but was never given an appointment.
She said, "There should be a strong leadership in every party. In the Congress, there is no leadership. I have great respect for Sonia ji but I can't see her. She didn't give (me) an appointment."