Expelled Congress MLA Bishnoi meets Shah and Nadda, may join BJP

Expelled Congress MLA from Haryana, Kuldeep Bishnoi on Sunday met Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP national president JP Nadda. “It was a real honour and pleasure to meet Amit Shah ji. A true statesman, I felt his aura and charisma in my interactions with him. His vision for India is awe-inspiring,” Bishnoi said in a tweet. “I am very proud to meet JP Nadda ji. His easy-going and humble nature sets him apart from others. Under his able chairmanship, BJP has seen unprecedented heights. I wish him good health and long life,” he added.

Bishnoi who cross-voted in the Rajya Sabha polls in Haryana was expelled from all party positions including his membership of the Congress Working Committee (Special Invitee).

After the Congress expelled Bishnoi, he had said that the rules of the party existed only for some leaders while there were exceptions for others. “Congress also has rules for some leaders and exceptions for others. Rules are applied selectively. Indiscipline has been repeatedly ignored in the past. In my case, I listened to my soul and acted on my morals,” he had tweeted.

He also stressed on the party’s inaction on other critical opportunities. “Had @incindia acted this swiftly & strongly in 2016 and on every other critical opportunity they’ve missed, they wouldn’t have been in such dire straits,” he added in another tweet. The expulsion came after Congress candidate Ajay Maken lost the Rajya Sabha elections to media baron Kartikeya Sharma, the BJP-backed independent candidate, by a “narrow margin”, a huge shock for the grand old party which was confident of winning the seat.

Polling was held on 10 June to elect two members to the Upper House of Parliament from Haryana. BJP’s Krishan Lal Panwar scored a comfortable victory with 31 votes, leaving the battle for the second seat between Maken and Sharma.