Major Blow To Congress As Party's Former Gujarat Chief Arjun Modhwadia Joins BJP

The two leaders, along with numerous others, attended the saffron party's state headquarters, 'Kamalam'.

Former Gujarat Congress Chief Arjun Modhwadia.

Former Gujarat Congress president and ex-MLA Arjun Modhwadia, together with the party's ex-working president Ambarish Der, joined the governing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday, one day after leaving the grand old party. The two leaders, along with numerous others, attended the saffron party's state headquarters, 'Kamalam'.

VIDEO | Gujarat: Arjun Modhwadia (@arjunmodhwadia), who resigned from Congress on Monday, joins BJP. pic.twitter.com/rZQBmYqXav

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) March 5, 2024

Gujarat BJP chief CR Paatil welcomed them into the party by offering them saffron caps and scarves.

While expressing anguish with the Congress's decision to boycott Ram Lalla's pran pratishtha ceremony in Ayodhya, both leaders on Monday resigned from the grand old party. 

It should be noted that both leaders announced their resignation from the Congress barely three days before Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra was slated to arrive in Gujarat.

Days before Der and Modhwadia resigned from the Congress, the party's Rajya Sabha member and former Union minister Naran Rathwa joined the ruling BJP, along with his son and a huge number of followers.

Modhwadia, who represented the Porbandar seat, resigned as an MLA from Gujarat Assembly Speaker Shankar Chaudhary in Gandhinagar on Monday evening. The speaker's office verified that the resignation was accepted.

Modhwadia, 67, is one of Gujarat's most senior and powerful opposition figures. He has been engaged with the Congress for about 40 years. He has also served as opposition leader and state unit president.

He defeated Babu Bokhiria, a BJP heavyweight, in the 2022 assembly election.

With Modhwadia's departure, the Congress' effective strength in the 182-member legislature has dropped to 14.

Modhwadia is the third Congress MLA to resign in the previous four months, following Chirag Patel and CJ Chavda, who left in December and January.