Ahead of the polls, a day after resigning from Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), senior tribal leader and former BJP MP, Nand Kumar Sai joined Congress party in Chhattisgarh on Monday.
While speaking to the reporters, Sai said that the decision to quit BJP was a tough decision. “It is no longer the party it was during the time of Atal ji and Advani ji,” he added.
On Sunday Sai had claimed that his colleagues are hatching conspiracies and levelling false allegations to tarnish his image.
Sai (77) is a former three-term Lok Sabha member and three-time MLA. He also served as the BJP's state president in Chhattisgarh and undivided Madhya Pradesh. The veteran tribal leader has an influence Surguja division.
Sai joined Congress in the presence of Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel and party's state chief Mohan Markam at the party headquarters here.
“I don't want any post. Even if they don't give a post in the party, they can at least ask how party affairs should be operationalised. I did not have any problem with the party. The party is not important, but the important thing is that everyone (party members) should work together for the common people,” he said.
"I decided to join the Congress as it has been doing good work under the leadership of Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel ji," Sai said. Efforts are being made to uplift poor, backward, tribals and all sections, he added.
Meanwhile senior BJP leader Raman Singh said that party would suffer a loss whenever a senior worker quits. He also said that Sai was respected by the party.
Sai was first elected as the Janata Party MLA in 1977 from Tapkara seat (now in Jashpur district) in Madhya Pradesh.
In 1980, he was elected as BJP's Raigarh district unit chief. He was elected as the BJP MLA from Tapkara in 1985 and 1998.
He was elected to the Lok Sabha from Raigarh in 1989, 1996 and 2004 and the Rajya Sabha in 2009 and 2010.
He was first leader of opposition in the Chhattisgarh Assembly after the state was carved out from MP in November 2000.
(With PTI inputs)
