Arvinder Singh Lovely, the former chief of the Delhi Congress, formally joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday. Lovely had just left from his role demanding the party’s partnership with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. Having Lovely and other erstwhile Congress leaders joining the BJP, the political climate in Delhi is experiencing a major shift.
Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, Delhi BJP the office of president Virendra Sachdeva, and national general secretary Vinod Tawde hailed Lovely and others into the party during the induction ceremony, which was held at the BJP headquarters in the nation’s capital. In spite of Lovely, former National Congress President Amit Malik, former Congress MLAs Raj Kumar Chauhan, Naseeb Singh, and Neeraj Basoya, joined the BJP.
Lovely had previously linked himself to the BJP in 2017 before joining the Congress again in 2018. This is not his first time with the party. Lovely recently came back to the BJP but expressed optimism about the party’s chances of winning elections, especially in Delhi. He underlined how confident he was that the BJP, led by Prime Minister Modi, will win all seven Lok Sabha seats in the nation’s capital.
Speaking to the media, Lovely reiterated his belief that the BJP would create a strong administration with a clear mandate, saying, “We have been given an opportunity to struggle for the people of Delhi underneath the leadership of the Prime Minister and under the banner of the BJP.” “The BJP flag will fly in the coming days,” he added.
Lovely’s discontent with the party’s decision-making process was evident in his resignation from Congress, which he justified by pointing to issues with their partnership with AAP and candidate selection. Lovely resigned from the Congress and expressed his displeasure with party meddling in a letter to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, criticizing the choice of nominees for Delhi constituencies such as Udit Raj and Kanhaiya Kumar.
In a similar vein, Naseeb Singh and Neeraj Basoya denounced the Congress’s partnership with the AAP in their resignation letters. Four of the seven Lok Sabha seats are in order for election on May 25. The AAP and Congress have an agreement to share seats in Delhi, with four seats belonging to the AAP and three to the Congress.
Lovely’s intention to join the BJP elicited stinging criticisms from Vinod Tawde, the head of the party, who poked fun at Rahul Gandhi’s bid for the Raebareli Lok Sabha region and hinted to a pattern of dynasty politics within the Congress party. Raebareli had Priyanka Gandhi posters. The motto of PM Modi is “Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao.” However, Tawde informed out that “Beta Bachao, Beta Badhao” is the Congress slogan.
Along with other Congress leaders, Arvinder Singh Lovely has joined the BJP, which drastically altered Delhi’s political landscape and is indicative of the ongoing story of the politics of parties and alliances in the run-up to the Lok Sabha elections.
