Chirag Patel is a first-time MLA from Khambat seat in Anand district
Former Congress MLA Chirag Patel joined the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party in Gujarat on Sunday in the presence of state BJP chief CR Paatil.
Mr Patel, a first-time MLA from Khambat seat in Anand district, resigned as member of the state assembly on December 14, 2023 after citing disappointment with the working style of the Congress leadership and alleging groupism in the party's state unit.
In the December 2022 state assembly polls, Mr Patel had defeated BJP's Mayur Raval by a narrow margin of less than 4,000 votes.
On Sunday, Mr Patel joined the BJP along with a large number of his supporters at an event in Khambhat.
State BJP chief Paatil, who is also an MP, inducted Patel into the party fold.
In his speech, Mr Paatil indicated that Mr Patel might be the BJP's candidate from Khambhat seat for the by-election, necessitated after his resignation.
Earlier in the day, around 2,500 Congress workers including sarpanchs and booth level workers from Borsad assembly constituency joined the BJP in Paatil's presence at Borsad Anand district.
Chirag Patel, in his speech, said he has joined the BJP to participate in the task undertaken by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel and state BJP head Paatil to make the country and the state prosperous and united.
He urged Mr Paatil to pay special attention to Khambhat's development. He also thanked the BJP leadership for taking up the issue of water supply and the government for sanctioning Rs 160-crore project for 56 villages in the assembly seat.
Mr Paatil said the BJP government will not let the area lag behind in development.
He praised Modi's leadership and said people all over the world are praising the manner in which the PM is taking India ahead.
Many people sacrificed their lives and many suffered for their resolve to get the temple of Lord Ram constructed in Ayodhya, a dream that has come true in a peaceful and legal manner because of the strong leadership of PM Modi, Mr Paatil said.
"I had taken a pledge (in the last assembly polls) to win all 182 seats in the state. When we will have the next assembly election, I may not be around as the party president, but you (voters of the constituency) should help the BJP win all 182 seats," he said.
On Saturday, former Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA Bhupendra Bhayani joined the ruling BJP at a function in Junagadh district.
Mr Bhayani, who represented the Visavadar seat in Junagadh as an AAP MLA, resigned from the post and the Arvind Kejriwal-led party in December last year and announced that he would join the BJP.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)