New Delhi: Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi's cousin brother Jaswinder Singh Dhaliwal joined the BJP on Tuesday. Dhaliwal joined the saffron party in the presence of Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat in Chandigarh, ANI reported.
Earlier in the day, former Punjab MLA Arvind Khanna and several other politicians from the state joined the BJP. Khanna, a businessman and two term former MLA, had quit the Congress some years back, PTI reported.
Kanwarveer Singh Tohra, grandson of former SGPC president Gurcharan Singh Tohra; Gurdeep Singh Gosha, who was with the Akali Dal; and Dharamveer Sareen also joined the BJP.
Welcoming them, Shekhawat, who is the BJP's in-charge for the Punjab assembly polls, said their presence would boost the BJP.
"The party will write a new chapter in the state's electoral history," Shekhawat said. The BJP has joined hands with former chief minister Amarinder Singh and the Akali faction headed by Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa for the polls.
The BJP is hopeful of making its presence felt this time in the Punjab polls, especially after facing the wrath of the farming community over the three farm laws, which have now been withdrawn.
At the event, Shekhawat alleged that Congress used the state machinery to foil Prime Minister Narendra Modi's proposed rally in Punjab last week. "It would have been the state's biggest rally," he claimed.
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There has been a major political uproar after PM Modi was stuck on a flyover in Punjab for 20 minutes due to a blockade by some protesters. The Home Ministry has called the incident a "major lapse" in security. PM Modi had to return from poll-bound Punjab without attending any event, including a rally.
Punjab will have single phase election on February 14. The votes will be counted and the results will be declared on March 10.