Prominent Jat leaders from Rajasthan Subhash Maharia and Hari Singh joined the Congress on Thursday amidst great fanfare at a function at the AlCC headquarters in New Delhi.
While Maharia is a three-time MP from Sikar and was Rural Development Minister in the Vajpayee government, it is home coming for Singh as he was earlier in the Congress and left the party in 2011, joining the BJP in 2013.
The two leaders met Congress president Sonia Gandhi and vice president Rahul Gandhi before their formal induction into the party.
The two leaders joined the Congress along with scores of their supporters. Present on the occasion were Rajasthan PCC president Sachin Pilot and Leader of Opposition Rameshwar Dudi.
Addressing the media, Pilot said the entry of the two leaders, who have a strong grassroots association and have been taking up farmers' issues, would strengthen the Congress in the state, with 22 months to go for Assembly elections.
"People had great expectations with the Vasundhara Raje government. But it has let them down. The people of the state are eager for elections to happen so that they can bring back the Congress," Pilot said.
He said the gap in the vote percentage has shrunk from 26 per cent in the Lok Sabha elections to less than two per cent in the Panchayat elections.
"Rajasthan is on the boil. People are extremely angry with the BJP government. It is because of this that thousands of my supporters are joining the Congress along with me," said Maharia.
Singh said his decision to come back to the Congress was guided by his concern for the plight of the marginalised in Rajasthan such as dalits and women.
