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In a significant blow to the Congress party ahead of the Rajasthan Assembly Elections, Jodhpur mayor Rameshwar Dadhich, a senior leader and close associate of Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, withdrew his nomination as an independent candidate from the Soorsagar constituency. Dadhich, who had been associated with the Congress for 50 years, joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday.
Joining him in the shift, Vinod Sharma, former Dausa district president of the Congress, also joined the BJP. Additionally, in Jaipur, former minister Rajpal Singh Shekhawat, who had submitted his nomination for the Jhotwara constituency against the BJP’s Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, decided to withdraw his candidacy after discussions with the party’s high command.
The induction of these Congress leaders into the BJP took place in the presence of Union Minister and the party’s Rajasthan election in-charge, Pralhad Joshi, Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, and MP Rajendra Gehlot.
Rameshwar Dadhich, expressing his reasons for joining the BJP, highlighted Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s commitment to elevating India globally and putting an end to scams like the paper leak scandal in Rajasthan. “I have joined the BJP due to the decision-making capacity of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. I have been impressed with his work for a long time. If Modi was not the prime minister, the construction of the Ram temple (in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh) could not have happened,” Dadhich stated after joining the saffron party.
The developments come as a setback for the Congress party, indicating internal shifts and strategic realignments ahead of the crucial Rajasthan Assembly Elections. The withdrawal of key leaders and their subsequent affiliation with the BJP adds a dynamic element to the political landscape in the state.
