Former Congress leader famous for TV debates joins BJP

Gourav Vallabh contested in the 2023 Rajasthan Assembly elections from Udaipur constituency.

New Delhi:

Gourav Vallabh today joined the Bharatiya Janata Party, hours after quitting the Congress over dissatisfaction with the party’s current trajectory. In a two-page resignation letter, Vallabh said he was unhappy with the party’s directionless approach.

“I can neither raise anti-Sanathan slogans nor insult wealth creators day in and day out. Therefore, I am resigning from all positions and major membership positions in the party,” Vallabh said.

Vallabh, a former Congress spokesperson who regularly appears on news channels, said he found himself uncomfortable with some of the positions taken by the party.

“I am disturbed by the directionless manner in which the Congress party is moving forward today,” he wrote in the letter.

I feel uncomfortable with the directionless way the Congress party is moving forward today. I can neither raise anti-Sanathan slogans in the morning and evening nor insult the wealth creators of the country. This is why I resigned from all positions and leading members of the Congress party. pic.twitter.com/Xp9nFO80I6

— Professor Gourav Vallabh (@GouravVallabh) April 4, 2024

Mr Vallabh first contested the polls in 2019 in Jharkhand’s Jamshedpur east, where he polled more than 18,000 voters, finishing third behind then Chief Minister Raghubar Das Das and Saryu Roy.

He then contested the 2023 Rajasthan Assembly elections from Udaipur constituency. However, he lost to the BJP candidate by about 32,000 votes.

The shift comes just a day after boxer Vijender Singh quit the Congress party and defected to the Bharatiya Janata Party.

Voting for the Lok Sabha election will be held in seven phases starting from April 11. Counting of votes will take place on June 4.