In a setback to the Congress in boll-bound Rajasthan, former Congress Member of Parliament Jyoti Mirdha joined the BJP here at the party’s headquarters on Monday giving a boost the BJP's Jat vote bank in the State
Mirdha who hails from the Nagaur region of Rajasthan shifted to the BJP along with the fellow the IPS-turned-politician Sawai Singh Choudhary in presence of the sate BJP president CP Joshi and party general secretary and state-in-charge Arun Singh.
After joining the BJP, Mirdha accused the Congress of deviating from the path of nation-building and criticised the party for ignoring the leaders and party cadres.
Mirdha assured the BJP leadership that she would contribute towards the party's success in the upcoming Assembly elections and parliamentary elections.
She said that she would work to establish a strong government in the state of Rajasthan and would work towards ensuring a third-term to the BJP at the centre.
Mirdha underlined that India has significantly progressed under the decisive leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
"With the joining of Jyoti Mirdha and Sawai Singh Choudhary, the BJP family has been strengthened further," BJP general secretary said welcoming the two leaders into the party fold.
“Jyoti Mirdha is a very popular leader," he said.
Mirdha , a doctor by profession , hailed Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his crucial leadership. "I began as a Congress MP. The Prime Minister is giving a crucial leadership, India is making its name in the world, whereas the Congress is doing just the opposite to it. I had less opportunities there. The workers were overlooked in Rajasthan. The state of law and order is poor here. I will work to strengthen the party and contribute to nation-building," she said.
Mirdha a Jat leader, comes from an influential political family in Nagaur has been under the control of Congress for most of the time since independence.
Her granddaughter was Nathuram Mirdha, a veteran Congress leader in western Rajasthan. Nathuram Mirdha had a long and distinguished political career, serving as a Member of Parliament six times and a Member of the Legislative Assembly four times.
Mirdha contested her first election in the year 2009 from Nagaur and won it.
However, in 2014, Mirdha lost the Lok Sabha elections to CR Chaudhary of the BJP during the Modi wave.
in 2019 also , Mirdha again contested on Congress ticket from Nagaur but lost seat to Rashtriya Loktantrik Party chief Hanuman Beniwal.
Her joining BJP close to the assembly polls may impact the Jat votes in seven assembly seats in Nagaur and nearby jat-dominated constituencies in the state.
The BJP is currently undertaking "Parivartan yatras" which have been flagged off in four divisions of the state.
While the ruling Congress, riven with factionalism, has a challenging task of retaining Rajasthan, the BJP is hoping that anti-incumbency may help it to wrest it from the Ashok Gehlot-led government . The state has the tradion of not repeating a party twice in the assembly polls.
Her joining BJP close to the assembly polls may impact the Jat votes in seven assembly seats in Nagaur and nearby jat-dominated constituencies in the state.