Sheo MLA Manvendra Singh, son of the expelled BJP leader and former External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh, will join the Congress on Wednesday. He announced his exit from the BJP at a “Swabhiman Rally” in Rajasthan’s Barmer district last month. Mr. Singh continued to represent Sheo constituency as a BJP member in the State Assembly even after his suspension from the party’s primary membership.
Mr. Jaswant Singh contested as an Independent in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections from Barmer-Jaisalmer after being denied BJP ticket. While he lost to BJP candidate Sonaram Chaudhary, Mr. Manvendra Singh was suspended from the party’s primary membership for campaigning for his father.
Sources in the Pradesh Congress Committee said Mr. Singh would join the party at president Rahul Gandhi’s residence in New Delhi on Wednesday.
Congress leaders Ashok Gehlot, Digvijaya Singh and Jyotiraditya Scindia will be present on the occasion. Mr. Singh’s parting of ways with the BJP is the result of the Rajput community’s growing discontent with the party.
Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje’s much-publicised ‘Gaurav Yatra’ had toured Barmer district last month, but it gave the Sheo constituency a miss. Mr. Singh has not shared a dais with Ms. Raje since 2014.
Likely to be fielded as a Congress candidate in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Mr. Singh said on Tuesday that his wife Chitra Singh would also be joining the Congress along with him. Mr. Singh’s entry will have a substantial impact on the Assembly election in the State, as the Rajput community in the Marwar region may extend its open support to the Congress.
Rajput leader and Ms. Raje’s trusted Cabinet colleague Rajendra Rathore said Mr. Singh’s decision would not have any impact on the BJP’s prospects in western Rajasthan. “The Rajput community has been a pillar of strength for the BJP since former Vice-President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat’s era. An individual leader crossing over to another party is not going to make a difference.”
