Congress MLAs PI Patel, Balwantsinh Rajput and Tejashree Patel resigned from the party on Thursday, ahead of the state assembly's two-day monsoon session on 8-9 August and the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections on 8 August. The MLAs are expected to join the BJP shortly, as per an ANI report. Soon after their resignation, the three MLAs arrived at the BJP office in Gandhinagar.
The resignations are significant as they come close on the heels of Congress leader Shankersinh Vaghela's exit from the party, and resigning from his post as MLA.
Also Read: Gujarat Congress in Crisis as Shankarsinh Vaghela Quits Party
While Rajput has made an exit from all his positions in the Congress, Patel, a vocal Congress leader in the Gujarat Assembly, has resigned from the party and the legislative assembly.
Earlier, Rajput had been conspicuous in his absence from the Congress MLAs meeting prior to Rajya Sabha MP Ahmed Patel filing his nominations for another term, as per a report by the Indian Express.
Rajput, an MLA from Sidhpur, had written to Congress chief Sonia Gandhi in a letter, saying, as quoted in a report by the Indian Express:
For the last few years, the Congress party has been trying to harm my reputation through my colleagues intentionally. Some party people have tried to hurt my reputation in the party due to my family relationships with Shankersinhji Vaghela.
(With inputs from ANI, Indian Express)
Also Read: Big Blow To Congress as Vaghela Quits Months Before Gujarat Polls
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