Former Congress leader Gourav Vallabh joins BJP

Hours after quitting Congress, Gourav Vallabh today joined the Bharatiya Janata Party in New Delhi. With this, Vallabh is yet another Congress leader to join the BJP recently after boxer Vijendra Singh, and Ludhiana MP Ravneet Singh Bittu.

Immediately after joining the BJP, Vallabh said he was hurt at congress party’s stoic silence on unsavoury remarks on the Sanatnana culture hurled by the leaders in the party as well as the INDIA alliance.

Vallabh, a professor in economics, had contested the Rajasthan assembly election from Udaipur in 2023. The BJP won comfortably from the seat with party candidate Tarachand Jain got 97466 votes, while vallabh could secure 64,695 votes. Earlier, in 2019 too Vallabh had contested form the Jamshedpur East constituency.

In early hours today, Vallabh tendered his resignation to Congress President Mallikarjuna Kharge saying his conscience does not allow raising slogans against wealth creators and the Sanatana culture of the country. In his resignation, he also claimed that there is huge disconnect of the Congress party from the ground realities.

In his letter, Vallabh said, "I am a professor of economics. Upon joining the Congress, the party made me the national spokesperson. I have put forward the issues concerning the country. But I have been feeling uncomfortable with the party's stand for some time."

Vallabh said in the letter that on the economic front, the party has resorted to constantly degrading and abusing the wealth creators of the country. “The party has gone against the principles of liberalization, privatization and globalization. It was once recognized globally for implementing these policies in the country. The party’s view on disinvestment has been very negative. Is generating wealth through business activity wrong in our country,” Vallabh said in the letter.