New Delhi: Congress leader and former Karnataka chief minister S.M. Krishna on Wednesday joined the BJP after being a Congress leader for nearly 50 years, a post he quit in January.
Krishna formally became a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party in the presence of party president Amit Shah.
The veteran leader, who had said the Congress did not need him, described the step as “a very important stop in my onward journey”.
At the programme, attended by party Shah and other key leaders of the BJP, Krishna said India has progressed “because of the leadership of PM Modi and Amit Shah”, NDTV reported.
He left the Congress earlier saying he was feeling neglected.
“I am feeling grateful on joining the BJP. Now, a great India has emerged under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Amit Shah,” he told the media.
Referring to former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Krishna said he had been “associated with the great leadership of the BJP” when he was the chief minister of Karnataka from 1999 to 2004.
Krishna was also the India’s external affairs minister.
Krishna’s move raises concerns about large-scale defection from the party’s state unit as the Siddaramaiah government faces assembly elections next year. It is also a huge shot in the arm for the BJP, which, after seizing control of three of the seven north-eastern states, is looking for a foothold in the south.
The 84-year-old had resigned from the Congress’ primary membership, miffed that the party’s state unit did not give him a key role or consulted him on key issues.
A trusted aide of Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, Krishna is credited with setting up Bengaluru as the nation’s IT hub. Later, he served as the Maharashtra governor and even had a stint as the country’s external affairs minister during the UPA government.
