Former Haryana BJP minister Karan Dev Kamboj joins Congress

Former Haryana BJP minister Karan Dev Kamboj joined the Congress in New Delhi on Friday, in the presence of the state president Udai Bhan and former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda. Both leaders welcomed Kamboj into the party, assuring him of full respect and responsibility.

“I have joined the Congress and will work for the party’s candidates wherever my duties are assigned,” Kamboj said during the event.

He had been upset after being denied a ticket from both Radaur and Indri constituencies. Kamboj has already extended his support to the Congress candidate Rakesh Kamboj from Indri. He pledged to work towards defeating BJP candidates in both Radaur and Indri.

Kamboj had sought a ticket from either Indri or Radaur. However, the party decided to field former MLA Shyam Singh Rana from Radaur, and sitting MLA Ram Kumar Kashyap from Indri. He alleged that Rana had quit the BJP during 2019 Assembly election and had only rejoined recently after spending nearly five years with the INLD.

Kamboj voiced strong opposition to the party’s decision, labeling Rana as a “traitor” and calling for the ticket to be revoked. Following the release of the first candidate list, Kamboj resigned from his position as OBC Cell state president in protest. CM Nayab Singh Saini even visited Kamboj’s residence to pacify him, but failed. Later, Kamboj was called in Delhi where he raised his concerns, further expressing his displeasure.

Last week, Kamboj met with Bhupinder Singh Hooda to discuss his political future. Before filing his nomination papers, Indri Congress candidate Rakesh Kamboj also approached Karan Dev for support. Kamboj extended his backing to Rakesh and vowed to work towards defeating BJP candidates in both Indri and Radaur.