Former Congress leader from Himachal joins BJP ahead of assembly election

Former Congress leader from Himachal Pradesh's Sirmaur Harpreet Singh Ratan joined the Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday.

This development comes a few days ahead of the state's assembly election which is scheduled on November 12. The results will be declared on December 8.

Harpreet Singh Ratan joined BJP at the residence of the party's national president JP Nadda on Thursday.

Shimla, Congress leader and Sirmaur District General Secretary Harpreet Singh Ratan, who belongs to the Paonta Sahib assembly constituency, took the membership of BJP at the residence of BJP National President Jagat Prakash Nadda in Delhi. Harpreet Singh Ratan has also been the Vice-President of the Congress Minority Front for a long time.

Harpreet Singh Ratan accused Congress of ignoring its own party workers.

"Even after many requests, the honor and respect of the workers and their feelings were ignored by the Congress party. I am sad because of this ignorance and because of this, I have today relinquished all posts and primary membership of the Congress Party," Harpreet Singh Ratan said.

He further said that he joined the BJP because it was the "workers' party".

"Impressed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, National President Jagat Prakash Nadda, and Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur's views and their efficient leadership, I have joined BJP today," he added.

Earlier, Himanshu Vyas, who was in charge of the Indian Overseas Congress, joined BJP on November 5 hours after he resigned from the Congress.

An All India Congress Committee (AICC) secretary, Vyas sent his resignation to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge.

Soon after leaving Congress, Himanshu Vyas joined BJP in Gujarat. The state will go to the polls in two phases on December 1 and 5 and results will be declared on December 8.

Meanwhile, Himachal Pradesh is also all set to go for the poll on Saturday.

On Thursday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses two rallies in the state where he launched a scathing attack on the grand old party.

Addressing the rally in Sujanpur, he noted that it had left with no power in the area which was considered the party's stronghold.

"The condition of Congress is deteriorating day by day. The area which was once considered Congress's stronghold, they have been completely wiped out from there. Congress has a history of false promises and false guarantees," he said.

He accused Congress of betraying the people of Himachal Pradesh during their rule.

"The people of Himachal are the biggest sufferers of the betrayal and deceit committed by Congress during their rule for many years. Whereas BJP has made constant efforts to provide basic facilities to every doorstep of Himachal," he said adding, "The people of Himachal have understood the reality Congress very well. Congress feels that Himachal will always run on its five-year formula. That's why Congress leaders don't care about Himachal and its people."

In Kangra, PM Modi linked the Congress to "corruption" and "instability" and said, "We always witness fights within the Congress party. We saw it in Rajasthan and other areas. Congress is the guarantee of instability, corruption, and scams. Congress can never give a stable government to HP and neither do they want.