AAP's only Lok Sabha member, Sushil Kumar Rinku, joined the BJP today. The move was accompanied by Jalandhar West MLA Sheetal Angural also joining the BJP ranks at the party headquarters in Delhi.
Mr Rinku emerged victorious in the 2023 Jalandhar Lok Sabha by-elections, securing a landslide victory. According to sources, Mr Rinku is set to contest the upcoming Lok Sabha elections under the BJP's banner.
In the 2022 Punjab Assembly elections, Mr Rinku and Mr Angural went head to head for the Jalandhar West seat. Mr Angural won the seat on an AAP ticket against Mr Rinku, then a Congress candidate. Mr Rinku switched to the AAP in 2023.
Mr Rinku was the AAP's only MP in the 543-member Lok Sabha.
The MP said he joined the BJP for Punjab's development, particularly in Jalandhar, and levelled accusations against the AAP-led state government for its alleged neglect in facilitating developmental projects.
"I have no greed for power. I am doing a new experiment for the betterment of Jalandhar," Mr Rinku said, as quoted by news agency PTI.
On Tuesday, Ludhiana MP and Congress leader Ravneet Singh Bittu also joined the BJP. Mr Bittu is the grandson of Beant Singh, former Chief Minister of Punjab, known for playing a key role in the state's anti-terrorism campaign. He was assassinated in a terror attack while still in office.
Polling for the 13 Lok Sabha seats in Punjab will be held on June 1, the seventh and last phase of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
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