Congress' Krishna Tirath joins BJP

In a jolt to the Congress ahead of the Delhi assembly polls, Krishna Tirath, who was a minister in the previous UPA government, Monday joined the BJP, saying there was "discipline in this party".

Tirath, who met Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president Amit Shah, said her role will be decided by the party leadership.

"I joined the BJP because there is discipline in this party... My role will be towards public service," Tirath told reporters here.

Tirath also said the Congress leadership should seriously think why party leaders were leaving and joining other political parties.

"There is lack of discipline and vision in the Congress. The party needs to think why its leaders are quitting," she said.

She also praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Reacting to Tirath crossing over, Congress leader Ajay Maken said it showed the BJP's "nervousness and desperation".

He said the BJP has to "import leaders from other parties because they have no faith in their own leaders".

Tirath was women and child development minister in the United Progressive Alliance-II government.

She was also a minister in the Sheila Dikshit government and was among the prominent faces of the party in Delhi.

A Congress leader admitted that Tirath's joining the BJP came as "a kind of surprise".

Tirath's induction is being seen as an effort by the BJP to consolidate its support among women and the Dalit community in the national capital.

Tirath is the third well-known name after former IPS officer Kiran Bedi and former Aam Aadmi Party leader Shazia Ilmi to join the BJP over the past week.