The state BJP received a shot in its arm when 18 senior leaders from Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party and Congress joined the party in lucknow in the presence of state party chief Mahendra Nath Pandey on Friday.
The leaders who joined the party included three former legislators, two sitting district panchayat chairpersons and several others senior functionaries of the SP and the BSP.
Pandey told reporters that former MlAs Chandra Rawat, Dr P K Rai (both SP) and Sashi Sharma of the Congress joined the party along with sitting district panchayat chairpersons of Varanasi and Mahoba, Aprajita Sonkar and Mamta Yadav respectively.
Others who joined the BJP includes SP leaders Dhirendra Verma (Chairman, Co-operative bank, Barabanki), Sohan lal Tyagi ( State Secretary of Samajwadi Yuvjan Sabha), Jitendra Yadav (National Secretary of Samajwadi Yuvjan Sabha) Vinod Soni (former vice-chairman of Nagar Palika, Mahoba), Aruna Yadav (State Secretary, Samajwadi Mahila Sabha), Dayashanker Madhesia (State Secretary, Samajwadi Mahila Sabha) , Gyanvati Madhesia (ex-chairman Ambedkarnagar nagar palika) and Balbir Bhati (ex-block pramukh of Bulandshahr) along with BSP’s Jai Narain Kureil (former Kanpur district chief), Ritu Singh Rawat (national spokesperson) and Sidhu Gopal Ahirwar( former District Panchayat Chairman of Hamirpur and former BSP co-ordinator).