Ashok Chavan To Join BJP? Ex-Maharashtra CM Quits Congress, To Announce Next Move In 2 Days

Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan, who recently resigned from the Congress party, stated that he has not yet decided on joining the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Former Chief Minister Ashok Chavan.

Source : PTI

Former Chief Minister Ashok Chavan has resigned from the Congress in Maharashtra, dealing a major loss to the party. The reasons for Chavan's exit from the party are unclear. He stated that he has not yet decided on joining the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and indicated that he would make a decision regarding his political future in a couple of days.

Chavan met with Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narvekar in Mumbai on Monday to tender his resignation. “I hereby submit my resignation from the primary membership of the Indian National Congress Party with effect from 12/02/2024 noon,” Chavan stated in his resignation letter.

Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan quits Congress

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) February 12, 2024

Meanwhile, sources indicate that Chavan will likely join the governing Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP). However, the Congress leader has not made a public pronouncement regarding his intentions to join the BJP.

Addressing reporters, Chavan refrained from discussing internal matters of the Congress party in public, saying, "I am not going to discuss anything happening in the Congress party on a public forum", as quoted by PTI. When asked about his next steps politically, he mentioned that he would make a decision within the next two days.

Regarding the possibility of joining the BJP, Chavan mentioned, "I haven’t taken any decision yet on joining the BJP, don’t know BJP’s working system." He emphasised that his decision to resign from the Congress was a personal one and did not wish to attribute any specific reason to it.

According to PTI, Chavan also dismissed suggestions that the recent white paper presented in Parliament influenced his decision to leave the Congress. The white paper notably mentioned the Adarsh Building scam, which was linked to a housing society in Mumbai and led to Chavan's resignation as the chief minister of Maharashtra in 2010.

Maharashtra Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis On Rumours Of Ashok Chavan Joining BJP

When questioned about reports of Ashok Chavan joining the BJP, Maharashtra Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis stated: "Several leaders of opposition want to join the BJP. Many Congress leaders are in touch with us because they feel suffocated in their party," PTI reported.

VIDEO | "Several leaders of opposition want to join the BJP. Many Congress leaders are in touch with us because they feel suffocated in their party," says Maharashtra Deputy CM @Dev_Fadnavis in response to a media query on reports of Ashok Chavan joining the BJP.

(Full video… pic.twitter.com/fATwHjrDvy

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) February 12, 2024

If he joins the BJP, it will be the third major blow to the Congress in a month, after former Maharashtra minister Baba Siddique joined Ajit Pawar's NCP on Saturday, ending a 48-year affiliation with the Congress party, reported. Earlier, another party leader, Milind Deora, defected to the saffron party. Deora's family has been affiliated with the Congress for more than five decades, and his father, Murli Deora, was one of the state's tallest leaders.

Subscribe And Follow ABP Live On Telegram: https://t.me/officialabplive