Haryana Elections: Ahead of the Haryana Assembly elections in 2024, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has suffered a significant setback. Former Member of Parliament Ashok Tanwar has rejoined the Congress party. On Thursday, October 3, during an election rally in Mahendergarh, he joined Congress in the presence of senior leaders Rahul Gandhi and Bhupinder Singh Hooda. Previously, he was a leader of the BJP.
On the last day of election campaigning on October 3, 2024, he returned to Congress with Rahul Gandhi present. Interestingly, Ashok Tanwar is the same individual who contested against Congress’s Dalit leader Kumari Selja from the BJP in the Lok Sabha elections for the Sirsa seat. It can be assumed that Kumari Selja was informed about Ashok Tanwar’s return and her consent was sought. Tanwar has previously served as the president of the Haryana Congress and resigned from the party in 2019.
Information from Congress:
Congress has shared on its social media that Ashok Tanwar has joined the party. Congress stated that the party has consistently raised its voice for the rights of the oppressed and marginalized, and has fought diligently for the protection of the Constitution. Influenced by our struggle and dedication, today senior BJP leader, former MP, member of Haryana’s BJP campaign committee, and star campaigner Ashok Tanwar has joined Congress. We welcome you back to the Congress family and wish you the best for the future.
Who is Ashok Tanwar?
Ashok Tanwar has a long association with Congress. He was the Secretary of NSUI in 1999 and became its President in 2003. In 2009, he was elected as an MP from the Sirsa Lok Sabha constituency on a Congress ticket. Following this, he served as the President of Haryana Congress from 2014 to 2019. However, he left Congress in 2019. After leaving Congress, Tanwar joined the Trinamool Congress, and later in 2022, he moved to the Aam Aadmi Party. Subsequently, he joined the BJP. In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, he contested from the Sirsa seat but lost to Congress’s Kumari Shelja.