Punjab Election 2022: Setback for Cong as Gurmit Singh Sodhi joins BJP; says 'deeply hurt, feels suffocated'

Sodhi stated in his resignation letter on Twitter that he was extremely upset by the party's constant squabbling and infighting.

Punjab Election 2022 Gurmit Singh Sodhi resigns from Congress says deeply hurt by bickering within party gcw

Team Newsable

Punjab, First Published Dec 21, 2021, 2:04 PM IST | Last Updated Dec 21, 2021, 3:29 PM IST

Rana Gurmit Singh Sodhi, a Congress MLA, has resigned from the party on Tuesday and joined the Bharatiya Janata Party, giving a severe blow to the party ahead of the 2022 Punjab elections. He joined the saffron party in the presence of Union ministers Gajendra Singh Shekhawat and Bhupender Yadav. Sodhi added that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP can preserve Punjab, which is why he has decided to join the BJP.

The leader stated in his resignation letter on Twitter that he was extremely upset by the party's constant squabbling and infighting. Taking to the micro-blogging site, Sodhi wrote that he could not accept Punjab's suffocation and helplessness. He said the Congress party had put the state's security and communal harmony at stake. Sodhi added that rather than taking action to restore peace in Punjab, senior Congress leadership is hell bent on destroying the border state for personal gains.

Sodhi, a close confidant of previous Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh, served in his government but was not included in the incoming chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi.

The 67-year-old has been involved in politics since 1973 and is regarded as one of the state's tallest leaders. He was first elected as an MLA in 2002, and he was re-elected in 2007, 2012, and 2017. In 2018, he was appointed chief whip of the Congress.

Also Read | Punjab Election 2022: Capt Amarinder Singh announces alliance with BJP; seat-sharing yet to be decided

Captain Amarinder Singh, the former Chief Minister of Punjab, joined forces with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in preparation for the upcoming Punjab Assembly elections.
Singh, who recently quit the Congress party to create the Punjab Lok Congress, met with senior BJP leader and Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat to explore the formation of an alliance between the two parties.

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