Giving a major blow to the Indian National Congress today Jitin Prasad, former MP from Uttar Pradesh, today joined the Bharatiya Janata Party. While, ministers from BJP have welcomed Jitin Prasada, few Congress leaders have expressed disappointment.
Senior Congress leader and MP Mallikarjun Kharge said that Jitin Prasad also had a future here in Congress Party, however it is unfortunate.
He also said, "Jaane wale jaate rehte hain" (goers keep going) and we can’t stop them.
Congress leader Jitin Prasada on Wednesday joined the Bharatiya Janata Party in Delhi. The former MP from Uttar Pradesh met with Union Ministers Piyush Goyal and Amit Shah before making his way to the BJP headquarters. The move gains additional significance, coming mere months before the UP Assembly polls.
Considered a core member of the Congress' Uttar Pradesh team, his defection is also being viewed by many as a major blow to jolt to Priyanka and Rahul Gandhi and the party as a whole. Many speculate that it could help the BJP gain an edge in the upcoming polls as Prasada is a known Brahmin face.
The son of Congress veteran Jitendra Prasada, he had served as the Minister of State from April 2008 to May 2009 and had held several other portfolios in the UPA-II government. In 2014's Lok Sabha polls however, the multi-term lawmaker had lost his seat to BJP's Rekha Verma. More recently, he had been appointed as the General Secretary for the Congress' West Bengal team.
