He quit Congress twice, joined BJP second time. Will quit politics but not again, he says now

Lovely was accompanied by Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva, who stated that leaders such as him will have the autonomy to determine their position within the party

Arvinder Singh Lovely, who just resigned as president of the Delhi Congress, stated on Wednesday that he would prefer to leave the BJP, which he has already joined, than to leave politics. Lovely joined the BJP last week along with other prominent Delhi Congress members, such as Amit Malik, Naseeb Singh, and former minister Raj Kumar Chauhan.

He had already left the Congress in April 2017 and joined Malik in the BJP. But in 2018, he returned to the Congress after a few months.

Since then, he has been a member of the Congress, which he left due to disagreements with the party’s leadership on the selection of candidates for the Delhi Lok Sabha elections.

“Last time I had taken the decision to quit the Congress due to anger. This time, however, we have taken the decision with a cool head and much thought. Now, we will do politics here (in BJP) only or quit politics instead of leaving the party,” Lovely told reporters at Delhi BJP office.

Lovely was accompanied by Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva, who stated that leaders such as him will have the autonomy to determine their position within the party.

Lovely stated that the worker’s position is crucial in any party, and he will fill it and represent the party wherever he is requested to.

Lovely is one of the 40 prominent BJP electoral campaigners in Delhi.

He made a suggestion that in the next days, a number of other Delhi Congress leaders might join the BJP.

“Raj Kumar Chauhan is a big leader in North West Delhi but his influence is not limited to that constituency only. Similarly, myself and Naseeb Singh are based in trans Yamuna area where there are two seats. This is just the beginning, if the party allows our other friends too will come,” he said.

Chauhan, a former minister in the administration of Sheila Dikshit, coincidentally joined the BJP prior to the Lok Sabha elections, having been refused a ticket for the North West constituency. He experienced a flashback when he was turned down for the same seat once more, which prompted him to leave the Congress and join the BJP alongside Lovely and other members.

Lovely asserted that the Congress has embraced people who adhere to the “tukde-tukde” philosophy. The Congress was formerly recognized for leaders like Indira Gandhi who spoke of giving their lives for the nation.

“Earlier when someone talked of patriotism, people used to say the person must be from the Congress. Now, when some one expresses love for the nation, people say he must be from the BJP,” said the former Delhi Congress president.

He expressed gratitude to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP leader JP Nadda, and the Delhi BJP for facilitating his admission into the saffron group, adding that he had previously maintained cordial ties with other party leaders.

Lovely claimed that there was no longer a contest in the East Delhi and North East Delhi constituencies, which are located in the trans Yamuna area of the city, following the entry of former Congress leaders like Chauhan and himself. This implied the role they would play in undermining the prospects of the INDIA bloc candidates for the two seats.

To give a direct fight to the BJP, the AAP and the Congress, which are members of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) bloc, have filed candidates for four and three seats, respectively.

Taking a jab at the INDIA bloc, Lovely said that the Congress had lately peeled away NCP head for Delhi, Yoganand Shastri. One member of the INDIA bloc is the NCP.

“What kind of alliance is this?” Lovely asked.

He stated that the AAP was not even mentioning the Congress or its leaders during its four-seat campaign in Delhi and that they were still hoping to win over party workers and supporters, which they knew would not happen this time.