BJP Spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla Resigns, Cites Personal Reasons: Report

New Delhi: Bhartiya Janata Party spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla has resigned from the saffron party, citing personal reasons, according to a News18 report.

The news comes a day after Poonawalla updated his bio on X. "Religion~Islam, Culture~Hindu, Ideology~Bhartiya; Author: GST Ki Yatra; Lifelong follower of PM @narendramodi," his new bio read.

There was no official statement from Poonawalla at the time of publishing this article. FPJ had reached out to him; however, he did not respond to our message.

Political graph and early life

Shehzad Poonawalla was born on October 17, 1987, in Maharashtra's Pune. He completed his studies at the MIT School of Government (MIT-SOG) in Pune.

He started his political career with the Congress party's student wing, the National Students' Union of India (NSUI), and later served in the AICC media cell. He is the brother of activist and political commentator Tehseen Poonawalla.

Rise in national politics

Shehzad gained prominent media attention in late 2017 when he openly criticised the Congress leadership and raised concerns over dynastic politics regarding Rahul Gandhi's election as party chief.

He later joined the BJP and was appointed as a national spokesperson, frequently representing the ruling party on prime-time news debates and political forums. In 2021, he was also made the in-charge of the BJP's social media wing for Delhi.