Congress leader Padmakar Valvi on Wednesday joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
The development comes after Valvi met state BJP president Chandrashekhar Bawankule on March 12 (Tuesday).
Media reports earlier said that Valvi, also a former minister, was speculated to join the BJP on March 13.
Padmakar Valvi is a former Congress MLA from Shahada constituency in Nandurbar. Valvi, former sports minister in the state, is one of the prominent faces of the Congress in Nandurbar and North Maharashtra.
Valvi's switch comes at a time when both NDA and I.N.D.I.A bloc partners are discussing a seat-sharing formula for Maharashtra for the upcoming Lok Sabha Polls 2024.
The speculation about Valvi’s switch occurred when Congress Member of Parliament (MP) Rahul Gandhi was in tribal-dominated Nandurbar district as part of his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra.
In 2009, Valvi was elected to the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly from Shahada Constituency. He, however, lost the election in 2014.
Speculation over Valvi’s switch to the BJP has been doing rounds for the past two years with Valvi denying it. But now after meeting Chandrasekhar Bawankule, he has finally decided to join BJP.
Earlier in the day, Congress leader Sachin Pilot said that "sitting MLAs, MPs are joining the grand old part". "A sitting Lok Sabha MP in Haryana left BJP and joined Congress. In Rajasthan too, a sitting Lok Sabha MP left the BJP and joined Congress. So, sitting MLAs and MPs are coming to us. Former legislators are going to BJP," Pilot said.
"So, people should understand this. People who are accepting the Congress ideology and expressing trust in our leadership are being welcomed to the party and given an opportunity. I am happy that the party has given opportunities to people based on their performance and commitment to the party. I have visited several states, and a good atmosphere for the INDIA Alliance is forming. The main contest, especially in north India, will be between the Congress and the BJP," he added further.
On Sunday, several Rajasthan party leaders, including former ministers Rajendra Yadav and Lal Chand Kataria, joined the Bharatiya Janata Party, causing a jolt to the Congress ahead of the Lok Sabha election.
Former Congress MLAs Ricchpal Mirdha, Vijaypal Mirdha, and Khiladi Bairwa, as well as former independent MLA Alok Beniwal, former state Congress chief Seva Dal Suresh Chaudhary, Rampal Sharma, and Riju Jhunjhunwala, have all joined the ruling party in the state, according to news agency PTI. Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma, state BJP President C P Joshi, and Union Minister Bhupendra Yadav all welcomed them to the party.
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