Big Blow To NCP As MP Udayanraje Bhosale Joins BJP Ahead Of Maharashtra Polls

Senior Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Udayanraje Bhosale on Saturday resigned as a Lok Sabha MP and joined the BJP saying he was inspired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership.

Bhosale also said that the people of the country were joining the BJP because of the leadership. (Image: ANI)

New Delhi: Senior Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Udayanraje Bhosale on Saturday resigned as a Lok Sabha MP and joined the BJP saying he was inspired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership. Earlier on Saturday, Bhosale first met Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and submitted his resignation from the Lower House. He then arrived at the residence of Bharatiya Janata Party and Union Home Minister President Amit Shah, where he formally joined the BJP in the presence of Working President J.P. Nadda, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and several other senior leaders. After joining the BJP, Bhosale said: "I am inspired by the works and leadership of Modi, Shah and the BJP." "I am happy to see that the BJP was following the paths of Shivaji Maharaj to strengthen the country." Bhosale also hailed the Modi government for revoking Article 370 from Jammu and Kashmir and said: "What nobody thought, they made it real by handling the sensitive matter in a very mature way to strengthen the country." Bhosale also said that the people of the country were joining the BJP because of the leadership in the party and its ideologies. Shah, while welcoming Bhosale, said: "The BJP and the Jana Sangh has always followed the ideologies of Shivaji Maharaj. And it was great that one of his family members has joined the party." Praising Bhosale for resigning as an NCP MP just four months after the Lok Sabha elections, Shah said: "He resigned as an MP within four months on moral grounds to join the BJP, which is a matter of pride." The Union Home Minister also stressed that the BJP, under the leadership of Modi in the Centre and Fadnavis in the state, will improve its tally in the Maharashtra Assembly elections scheduled later this year. "I have toured the state recently and I am assured that the BJP will improve its tally in the assembly elections and will win three fourth majority," he said. Bhosale won in the Lok Sabha elections by a margin of around 1,30,000 votes from the Satara parliamentary constituency in Maharashtra.