New Delhi, Nov 18 (IANS): Kailash Gahlot, former Delhi minister and senior Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday, a day after quitting Arvind Kejriwal-led party.
Gahlot joined the BJP at party headquarters in presence of senior BJP leaders including Manohar Lal Khattar, Jay Panda, Anil Baluni, Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva and more.
Gahlot, AAP’s Jat face in the capital and MLA from Najafgarh constituency twice, was minister in AAP government since 2017 and held charge of key portfolios including home, transport, IT and women and child development departments.
In his resignation letter addressed to AAP convenor Arvind, Gahlot cited unfulfilled promises and recent controversies as the reasons behind the move.
His resignation from the Council of Ministers was also accepted by CM Atishi with immediate effect.
Gahlot, in his resignation letter, claimed the party had drifted from its core values.
"Today, AAP faces grave challenges... to the values that brought us together,” he wrote.
In his resignation letter, the 50-year-old leader pointed to "grave challenges" within AAP and also lamented that the ‘values which brought them together was getting lost in politics’.
"Political ambitions have overtaken our commitment towards people, leaving many promises unfulfilled. Take for example the Yamuna, which we had promised to transform into a clean river, but never got around to doing it. Now the Yamuna River is perhaps even more polluted than ever before," he wrote.
In the letter, he also addressed controversy surrounding Arvind Kejriwal’s bungalow, which his rivals termed it ‘Sheeshmahal’.
Gahlot said, “There are several embarrassing and bizarre issues like Sheeshmahal, which have now led people to question whether we still believe in being the party of the common man.”
He further stated that the continuous tussle between the Delhi government and the Centre has hindered the city’s progress.
“It is now clear that if the Delhi government spends most of its time fighting with the Centre, real progress for Delhi is not possible,” Gahlot added.
Gahlot’s resignation from AAP came as a big blow for the AAP, particularly in light of Assembly elections, scheduled in February next year.