Congress suffers jolt in Gujarat as its Rajya Sabha MP Naran Rathwa joins BJP

In a major blow to the Congress in Gujarat ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, its Rajya Sabha member and former Union minister Naran Rathwa joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) along with his son and a large number of supporters here on Tuesday.

The tribal leader from Chhota Udepur in Gujarat, Rathwa's tenure as the Rajya Sabha member will end in April this year. He was elected to the Lok Sabha five times - first in 1989, then in 1991, 1996, 1998 and 2004. Rathwa's son Sangramsinh had unsuccessfully contested the 2022 Gujarat assembly elections as a Congress candidate from Scheduled Tribe (ST)-reserved Chhota Udepur seat.

He joined the BJP along with his father and a large number of supporters at a function. Rathwa was a Minister of State for Railways in the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government in 2004, and lost to BJP candidate Ramsinh Rathwa in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections. Gujarat BJP chief C R Paatil inducted Rathwa and others into the party by offering them saffron scarves and caps at the party's state headquarters 'Kamalam' here.