Madhya Pradesh: BJP's Balendu Shukla joins Congress in presence of former CM Kamal Nath

Ahead of the upcoming by-polls in Madhya Pradesh, former state minister and BJP leader Balendu Shukla on Friday joined Congress in the presence of former state Chief Minister Kamal Nath. This comes at a time when the Congress in Madhya Pradesh is aiming to regain power by winning 24 seats in the 230-member state Assembly. The date of the bypolls is not announced so far.

The 24 seats include 22 vacated by former Congress MLAs who resigned when former Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindhia exited Congress to join the BJP. Two seats were vacant due to the death of their MLAs. The exit of Scindia led to the fall of Kamal Nath-led government in the state. 

'Homecoming' says former CM Kamal Nath

Amid the tussle to regain power in MP, former Chief Minister Kamal Nath welcomed Shukla to the party and said the reason why he left Congress is not in the party anymore and his re-joining the party is his 'homecoming'.

"Balendu Shukla joined Congress. The reason why he left the Congress earlier is not in the party anymore. It is his homecoming. We all welcome them. There are many people who want to join the party," Kamal Nath said.

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Shukla was part of the Congress earlier, but left the party in 2009 reportedly due to differences with Jyotiraditya Scindia, who recently joined the BJP in the month of March. Shukla was reportedly angry with Scindia's entry into the BJP. Congress is hopeful that Shukla's entry will help the party in the upcoming by-polls.

Scindia joins BJP

In March, Jyotiraditya Scindia was formally inducted into the BJP in the presence of party president JP Nadda at the party headquarters at Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Marg in the national capital. Scindia has been miffed about not being elected CM and not being elected as  Madhya Pradesh Congress chief - both of which were given to Nath. The Congress MLAs have turned on him terming him a 'traitor'. 

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