NEW DELHI: Former Delhi transport minister and Aam Aadmi Party’s prominent Jat face in Delhi, Kailash Gahlot, on Monday joined the BJP ahead of the assembly elections.
Gahlot join the BJP in the presence of Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva, day after resigning from his post as minister and member of the Arvind Kejriwal-led ruling party.
“It was not an easy decision for me as I was associated with AAP since Anna Hajare’s movement. A narrative is being built that I took the decision under ED, CBI pressure which I strongly refute. I had joined the AAP with a hope to bring change but the values for which we fought were being compromised, which prompted me to quit the AAP and join BJP,” Kailash Gahlot said.
The former AAP minister said that the AAP strayed from its core values and ethics and these sentiments were mirrored by thousands of party workers. If a government, on a drop of a hat, waste its time fighting Centre, than it’s certainly not doing its work, he said.
Citing reasons behind his decision to quit AAP, Kailash Gahlot had alleged that political ambitions have overtaken party’s commitment towards people.
He said that “we have been increasingly only been fighting for our own political agenda” instead of people’s rights.
In his resignation letter, the Delhi transport minister also cited recent controversies facing the party and unfulfilled promises to people.
Gahlot, who is the MLA from Najafgarh, tendered his resignation from the council of ministers with immediate effect. Official sources said the resignation was accepted by Delhi chief minister Atishi.
He was incharge of portfolios of Home, Administrative Reforms, IT and Women and Child Development.
Kejriwal reacts
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convener Arvind Kejriwal, commenting on Kailash Gahlot joining the BJP, said on Tuesday that “He is free, he can go wherever he wants.”
Earlier on Sunday, AAP launched a sharp attack on BJP over the resignation of minister Kailash Gahlot, saying it was driven by pressure from ED and CBI at the behest of the Centre.
Senior AAP functionary and MP Sanjay Singh called the resignation a part of BJP’s ‘dirty politics’, while chief party spokesperson Priyanka Kakkar asserted that Gahlot chose to join BJP to avoid imprisonment amid ongoing ED and CBI investigations against him and his family.
Sanjay Singh said, “Pressure was created on Gahlot by conducting ED-CBI raids and, now, he is speaking according to the script given to him by BJP. The Modi Washing Machine has become active before Delhi elections. Now many functionaries will be inducted into BJP through this machine.”
He added: “This is the nature of BJP, when they use agencies to raid someone’s property or summon them for questioning, they hold loud press conferences, accusing the person of corruption. Yet, as soon as that person joins BJP, all charges are miraculously dropped.”
(With agency inputs)