Day After Quitting Congress, Ashok Chavan Joins BJP; Will File RS Nomination Tomorrow

Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan on Tuesday joined the Bharatiya Janata Party a day after tendering his resignation from the Congress. Chavan will file his Rajya Sabha nomination on February 14.

Giving another blow to the grand old party, Chavan on Monday resigned from the party’s primary membership before the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. The former Congress leader was reportedly unhappy with the grand old party’s decisions in the state.

In a statement, Chavan said, “I hereby submit my resignation from the primary membership of the Indian National Congress Party with effect from 12/02/2024 noon.”

He met Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narvekar in Mumbai on Monday and submitted his resignation. Meanwhile, the BJP top brass in the state also arrived at the party’s Mumbai Pradesh Office, sources said.

This move from the son of former chief minister and Union Home Minister S B Chavan comes days after the exit of senior Congress leader Baba Siddique, who joined Ajit Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party on Saturday.

Siddique broke his 48-year-long association with the grand old Congress party.

Earlier in January, Congress leader Milind Deora also resigned from the primary membership of the party, ending his family’s 55-year association with Congress.

Yesterday, after Chavan’s resignation, Maharashtra deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis had passed a cryptic remark saying, “Aagey aagey dekho hota hai kya” (wait and watch what happens next).

Chavan’s resignation also triggered sharp reactions from the Opposition. Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray claimed that the BJP is evolving into a “Congress occupied BJP”. Expressing his astonishment at Chavan’s exit, Thackeray highlighted the potential consequences on state farmers’ welfare if leaders prioritise personal interests.

Though Chavan denied the claim, it is being said that the mention of Adarsh Building scam in the white paper tabled in the Parliament last week might have been a potential factor in his exit.

The Adarsh Building scam was a scandal that led to Chavan’s resignation as state Chief Minister in 2010. Chavan is an accused in the Adarsh housing society scam wherein a 31-storey posh building in south Mumbai was constructed allegedly on land owned by the Defence Ministry without getting the requisitre permissions and clearances.

Charges under the provisions of the Indian Penal Code for criminal conspiracy and cheating and under the Prevention of Corruption Act were pressed against Chavan.

This matter is pending before the Supreme Court which had stayed the case proceedings in 2018.