In a major setback for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ahead of the Haryana Assembly elections, its leader Ashok Tanwar has left the party and rejoined the Congress on Thursday. Former Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda welcomed Tanwar back into the party by presenting him with the party's stole in the presence of Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi.
Congress welcomes Tanwar to party fold
In a dramatic turn of events, Tanwar, who earlier in the day participated in a BJP rally at 1:45 pm and even tweeted about it, participated in a Congress event later in the day. Soon after, news broke that Tanwar had officially rejoined the Congress. The Congress party shared the announcement on social media, welcoming Tanwar back. The party stated, "Congress has consistently raised its voice for the rights of the oppressed and marginalised, and has fought earnestly to protect the Constitution. Inspired by our commitment and dedication, senior BJP leader, former MP, member of BJP’s Haryana campaign committee, and star campaigner Ashok Tanwar has joined Congress. Welcome back to the Congress family, and best wishes for the future."
'Ghar wapsi for Tanwar'
As Gandhi was winding up his speech, an announcement was made from the stage asking the audience to wait for a few minutes. Soon after, Tanwar, who had joined the BJP earlier this year, walked onto the stage and it was announced that "aaj unki ghar wapsi ho gayi ha (today, he has returned to the Congress fold)".
Tanwar, who was considered close to Gandhi and had left the Congress in 2019 following differences with senior party leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda, joined the party hours before the campaigning for the October 5 Haryana Assembly polls comes to an end at 6 pm. The Dalit leader's return to the Congress is likely to come as a boost for the party, which is looking to wrest power from the BJP after a decade.
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