Congress MP Deepender Hooda on Monday called ex Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh's decision to join the Bharatiya Janata Party 'wrong' and warned the former party veteran that the move 'will not be appreciated by the people'. Amarinder Singh - who quit the Congress in November, months before an election the party lost - met BJP chief JP Nadda in Delhi today.
Punjab Lok Congress spokesperson Pritpak Singh Baliawal said Friday that Singh is likely to merge his party with the BJP. The ex Punjab CM formed the Lok Congress last year after he quit the Congress. As many as six other ex-Congress leaders are likely to join the BJP too.
According to news agency PTI, Singh's son, Raninder Singh, and daughter, Jai Inder Kaur, are also expected to join the BJP. Singh's wife, Preneet Kaur, is the Congress MP from Patiala.
Amarinder Singh met both prime minister Narendra Modi and home minister Amit Shah in Delhi last month amid speculation he will get a 'key' role in the party. After that meeting he tweeted: "Had a warm meeting with Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi Ji".
Singh parted ways with the Congress last year after his exit as Punjab chief minister, a post he held for two terms - 2002-07 and 2017-21. He was replaced by Charanjit Singh Channi.
{{/usCountry}}Singh parted ways with the Congress last year after his exit as Punjab chief minister, a post he held for two terms - 2002-07 and 2017-21. He was replaced by Charanjit Singh Channi.
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After this he formed the Punjab Lok Congress, allied with the BJP and contested the February election from Patiala (urban). However, he lost to the Aam Aadmi Party's Ajit Pal Singh Kohli.
The Punjab Lok Congress failed to win a single seat.