Satpal Maharaj quits Congress, joins BJP; says must give Modi one chance

Zee Media Bureau/Deepak Nagpal

New Delhi: In a blow to the Congress, Congress MP from Garhwal, Satpal Maharaj, quit the party on Friday and joined the Bharatiya Janata Party. Satpal Maharaj was welcomed into the BJP by party president Rajnath Singh at a press conference here. “With the entry of Satpal Maharaj, the BJP will be strengthened. I welcome him,” Rajnath Singh said on the occasion. Satpal Maharaj, on his part, endorsed Narendra Modi for PM, saying under his leadership India will march forward. “China was behind us, but it has today surpassed us because of leadership. Under Modi`s leadership, we will take India ahead of China,” he said. “When China can march forward, why can`t we? We must give Modi a chance,” the former Congress leader added. Maharaj also attacked the Uttarakhand government, accusing it of doing nothing for the victims of last year`s floods. "People are suffering and nothing has been done for them. Hills are in danger as people are relocating to plains for making a living," he said. He was said to be unhappy with the Congress for picking Harish Rawat as the state`s Chief Minister and had recently announced that he would not contest the Lok Sabha election as he was "deeply hurt" by the neglect of his constituency. Satpal Maharaj`s resignation came soon after former Union home minister Buta Singh also quit the party today. The Uttarakhand leader is believed to have the support of 10 MLAs and if they to decide to cross over, the Congress government in the hill state could be in danger.