Upset after being denied a ticket from both Radaur and Indri constituencies, former BJP OBC Cell state president and former Haryana BJP Minister Karan Dev Kamboj on Friday joined the Congress in New Delhi in the presence of the former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda. “I have joined the Congress and will work for the party’s candidates wherever my duties are assigned,” Kamboj said during the event.

Kamboj has already extended his support to the Congress candidate Rakesh Kamboj from Indri. He pledged to work towards defeating BJP candidates in both Radaur and Indri. Kamboj had sought a BJP ticket from either Indri or Radaur. However, the party decided to field former MLA Shyam Singh Rana from Radaur, and sitting MLA Ram Kumar Kashyap from Indri. He alleged that Rana had quit the BJP during 2019 Assembly election and had only rejoined recently after spending nearly five years with the INLD. Kamboj voiced strong opposition to the party’s decision, labeling Rana as a “traitor” and calling for the ticket to be revoked. Following the release of the first candidate list, Kamboj resigned from his position as OBC Cell state president in protest. CM Nayab Singh Saini even visited Kamboj’s residence to pacify him, but failed. Later, Kamboj was called in Delhi where he raised his concerns, further expressing his displeasure. Last week, Kamboj met with Bhupinder Singh Hooda to discuss his political future. Before filing his nomination papers, Indri Congress candidate Rakesh Kamboj also approached Karan Dev for support. Kamboj extended his backing to Rakesh and vowed to work towards defeating BJP candidates in both Indri and Radaur.

In another programme, former MLA from Pundri, Tejvir Singh, joined the Congress in the presence of Hooda, giving a jolt to the ruling BJP in Haryana ahead of the assembly election. Tejvir Singh, who has a strong political legacy due to his father Chaudhary Ishwar Singh, was elected as an MLA from Pundri in 2000 as an Independent candidate after quitting the Congress over the denial of a ticket. His father, Ishwar Singh, was a prominent political figure who served as MLA from Pundri four times — once as an Independent in 1968 and thrice on the Congress ticket in 1972, 1982, and 1991. During his tenure, Ishwar Singh held several important positions, including Speaker of Haryana Assembly from 1991-96, Deputy Chairman of Haryana State Planning Board, and Chairman of Haryana State Agricultural Marketing Board.