In a fresh setback to Congress, party leader and renowned boxer Vijender Singh joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday in Delhi. Soon after officially joining the saffron party, Singh said, "It is ghar wapsi for me. Respect for Indian athletes has increased since the BJP government came to power."
Vijender Singh has joined BJP ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, whose first phase is set to commence on April 19. His surprise entry into BJP comes amid speculation he might be fielded by the Congress from Mathura against BJP's Hema Malini, who is seeking a third term.
Hailing from Haryana's Bhiwani, Vijender Singh is a professional boxer and participates in fights in various countries. Back in 2008 in Beijing, Vijender scripted history after becoming the first Indian boxer to win an Olympic medal.
Here are the top 5 things the Olympian said after leaving the Congress:
1) Praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Singh asserted that respect for Indian athletes has increased since the BJP government came to power.
2) He stated that he has joined the BJP for the development of the country and to serve the people. "I would like to be a part of this government, help people and show them the right path. I am the same Vijender that I was...," he added.
3) Singh mentioned that now that he has joined the saffron party, he will work towards the betterment of Indian athletes under the leadership of PM Modi.
4) "Players used to face many hurdles, especially when we go abroad, but since the Modi government has come to power, we don't face such issues anymore, and players get more respect," said Singh.
5) He expressed his commitment to listening to athletes and working towards finding solutions to their issues.
In 2019, Vijender unsuccessfully contested Lok Sabha elections on Congress ticket from the South Delhi constituency. The Olympian lost his deposit by garnering 13.56% of the total votes. Singh came at a distant third on the seat, which incumbent BJP MP Ramesh Bidhuri clinched with a massive margin of over 3.7 lakh votes. Singh, bagged 1.64 lakh votes to be way behind AAP’s Raghav Chadha, who received 3.19 lakh votes.
Vijender Singh's decision to join the saffron party comes as a surprise to many, especially considering that he retweeted a tweet from Congress leader Rahul Gandhi just yesterday. There were speculations that the Congress party was considering fielding Vijender from the Mathura Lok Sabha seat against BJP candidate Hema Malini.
