Rajasthan Assembly Election 2018: Manohar Parrikar ill because of Rafale deal, says Jaswant Singh's son Manvendra Singh after joining Congress

Rajasthan Assembly Election: Rajasthan's Parliamentary Affairs Minister Rajendra Rathore claimed Singh's decision is a political misstep and he should have thought before switching sides.

Congress leaders claimed his move will help bring Rajput votes to the party-fold while the BJP said the MLA's politically wrong decision will have no impact on the ruling party. ANI IMAGE

Jaipur/Barmer: Veteran BJP leader Jaswant Singh's son and MLA Manvendra Singh joined the Congress on Wednesday, ahead of the assembly polls in Rajasthan in December. Singh (54), who won Barmer's Sheo constituency as the BJP candidate in 2013 assembly elections, had announced at a rally last month that he is leaving the Bharatiya Janata Party.‘Kamal ka Phool Badi Bhool', he had said then, claiming that going with the BJP's election symbol, the lotus, was a big mistake. Talking to reporters he said, "I met Rahul Gandhi in the morning today and he welcomed me into the Party. I have confidence that my supporters will continue to support me." Singh courted controversy after his induction saying Goa CM Manohar Parrikar (62) is suffering health problems because of the controversial Rafale deal. Parikkar was the defence minister when the deal for 15 Rafale aircraft was signed his French counterpart in New Delhi in September 2016. Parrikar is being treated for a pancreatic ailment, is recuperating at his private residence here after arriving from the national capital. His office has said that is condition is improving. Meanwhile, Congress leaders claimed Manvendra Singh's move will help bring Rajput votes to the party-fold while the BJP said the MLA's politically wrong decision will have no impact on the ruling party. There is a long list of leaders quitting the BJP and the party should introspect why this is happening, he said. We are welcoming Manvendra Singh and this will strengthen the party. He added the party will ensure his active participation in the upcoming assembly elections in the state. Rajasthan's Parliamentary Affairs Minister Rajendra Rathore claimed Singh's decision is a political misstep and he should have thought before switching sides. The Congress is helpless. Therefore it is adopting sidelined BJP leaders. It is his personal decision but this is a politically wrong decision. He is not going to get anything with this, Rathore told reporters at Ranakpur in Pali. As for the Rajput votes, Rathore said the community has traditionally voted for the BJP. There will be no impact of this as the Rajput votes will remain with the BJP only, he said. Fateh Khan, the president of the Barmer unit of the Congress, said the Rajputs are not happy with the Vasundhara Raje government in Rajasthan.The Congress party is going to gain when Manvendra joins Congress, he said. In western Rajasthan, the Rajput vote is often considered a deciding factor on many seats. The Congress is also hoping to get the support of communities like the Rajpurohits, Charans and Prajapats with Singh joining the party. Manvendra Singh won Barmer's Sheo assembly constituency in 2013 with a margin of 31,425 votes. His father Jaswant Singh, who is in coma for the last four years, was denied ticket by the BJP from the Barmer-Jaisalmer constituency in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. He then contested elections as an independent and lost the seat to BJP's Sonaram, who had joined the party after switching from the Congress. There was resentment among Jaswant Singh supporters over the denial of the BJP ticket for the veteran, and they blamed Vasundhara Raje for this. These supporters had then rallied around his son Manvendra Singh, calling it an issue of swabhiman' or self-respect.