E-Paper
Gourav Vallabh resigns: List of top Congress leaders who joined BJP since 2019
A look at some of the top Congress leaders who have quit the grand old party to join the BJP since 2019.
The Congress suffered yet another loss ahead of the Lok Sabha election on Thursday as its spokesperson Gourav Vallabh resigned from the grand old party and joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). According to Vallabh, he quit the Congress party as he did not feel comfortable with the “directionless way” in which they had been moving.
“I can neither raise anti-Sanatan slogans nor abuse the wealth creators of the country in the morning and evening…I am emotional. I want to say, write, tell a lot. But, my values forbid me from saying anything that might hurt others. Still, I am putting my views before you today, because I feel that hiding the truth is also a crime, and I do not want to be a part of the crime,” Vallabh wrote in his resignation letter to Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge. The now-former Congress leader said that he joined the BJP as he supports Prime Minister Narendra Modi's agenda of ‘Viksit Bharat’.
Vallabh's switch over to the BJP comes a day after ace boxer-turned-Congress leader joined the saffron party. Meanwhile, former Bihar Congress president Anil Sharma also joined the saffron party earlier in the day.
Let's take a look at some of the top Congress leaders who have quit the grand old party to join the BJP since 2019:
Jagdish Shettar
Jagdish Shettar, the former chief minister of Karnataka, quit the Congress party in January 2024 - a year after joining the grand old party and rejoined the BJP. He had quit the ruling party in 2023 after he was denied a ticket for the assembly election.
Also read: Nation’s progress, corruption-free Bengal key issues in Lok Sabha polls: Modi
Anil Antony
Anil Antony, the son of Congress veteran AK Antony, joined the BJP on April 6, 2023. He held the position of Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) digital media convenor and the national coordinator of the All India Congress Committee (AICC), however, he quit the party following the row over his opposition to the BBC documentary on Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Hardik Patel
Gujarat Patidar leader Hardik Patel, who had joined the Congress party in 2020, quit in May 2022 and joined the BJP. The same year, the BJP fielded him as a candidate for the Viramgam seat in the Gujarat assembly election, which he won.
RPN Singh
Former union minister RPN Singh quit Congress and joined the BJP in January 2022. Singh, who is a key backward caste leader, said that the “party that he worked for with dedication and honesty for 32 years was not the same anymore”. He also said that his decision to switch sides was prompted by PM Modi's work for the country.
Sunil Jakhar
Former Punjab Congress chief Sunil Jakhar quit the Congress party and joined BJP in May 2022. Jakhar, whose resignation came as a big shock for the grand old party, said it was not easy for him to leave his now-former party of 50 years, but had to due to issues such as ‘nationalism’, ‘brotherhood’ and ‘unity’ in Punjab.
Amarinder Singh
Former Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh joined the BJP in 2022 and merged his then-newly launched Punjab Lok Congress (PLC) with the saffron party. He had formed the PLC party in 2021 following his split with the Congress party.
Jaiveer Shergill
Former Congress spokesperson Jaiveer Shergill quit the grand old party and joined BJP in December 2022. Upon joining the ruling party, Shergill had said that he was moving forward from Congress' "negative politics" to the "politics of positive development".
Jitin Prasada
Former union minister Jitin Prasada switched sides from Congress to BJP in June 2021 - a year before the Uttar Pradesh assembly election. Prasada had said that his decision to leave the Congress came after a lot of deliberation, adding that his connection with the party spanned three generations.
Also read: Lok Sabha elections: Congress says ‘no friendly fight’ in Kerala after Rahul Gandhi's nomination from Wayanad
Jyotiraditya Scindia
Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia quit the Congress and joined the BJP in March 2020, ending his 18-year-old association with the grand old party. Scindia’s exit from the Congress was followed by resignation letters from around 22 MLAs who were sequestered in Karnataka.
Alpesh Thakor
Former Congress MLA Alpesh Thakor quit Congress and joined the BJP in July 2019, just days after the Lok Sabha election. Shortly after joining the saffron party, he was fielded for the bypoll from the Radhapur constituency in Gujarat, but he lost the seat.
