3-time Hamirpur MP Suresh Chandel rejoins BJP

Dinesh Kanwar

Hamirpur, October 4

Three-time Hamirpur MP Suresh Chandel rejoined the BJP in Bilaspur today in the presence of national party president JP Nadda, Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur, state party president Suresh Kashyap and local MLA Subhash Thakur. He had earlier emailed his resignation to AICC president Sonia Gandhi.

Chandel had remained state BJP president. He belongs to Bilaspur district and had thrice represented Hamirpur in the Lok Sabha in 1998, 1999 and 2004. Eleven MPs, including Chandel, were expelled from Parliament on December 23, 2005, for accepting money to raise questions in the House.

Chandel had joined the Congress when the BJP denied him ticket from Bilaspur to fight the 2017 Assembly elections.

He had unsuccessfully contested the 2012 Assembly election from the Bilaspur Sadar constituency on the BJP ticket and lost to Congress candidate Bambar Thakur by a margin of 5,141 votes

Nadda said that Chandel was his old associate. “I persuaded Suresh Chandel to rejoin the BJP and make it stronger in the region. It is homecoming for Chandel. Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur and other state leaders were well aware that Chandel will rejoin the party,” he added.

Chandel said that he felt suffocated in the Congress and was now feeling relieved. He added that he was never comfortable in the Congress and was neither convinced about nor a follower of the Congress’ ideology. “I have sent my resignation to Congress president Sonia Gandhi and HPCC president Pratibha Singh. I know and understand the ideology of the BJP and will work for the growth of the party,” he said.

Kashyap said Chandel’s re-induction would strengthen the BJP at the grass-roots level. He added that Chandel had been successful as state BJP president and the party would gain from his vast political experience.

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