Shatrughan Sinha joins Congress, terms BJP 'one-man show, two-men army'
New Delhi, Apr 6: Dissident BJP MP Shatrughan Sinha Saturday joined the Congress, which welcomed him with a Lok Sabha ticket, as he lambasted his former party, terming it a "one-man show and two-men army".
The 72-year-old actor-turned-politician said he left the BJP, on its foundation day Saturday, with "immense pain and heavy heart". He alleged there is no place left in the party for dialogue and its leadership does not value its own veterans, and views its opponents as "enemies".
Sinha also heaped praise on Congress president Rahul Gandhi. He is a dynamic, "tried, tested and successful" leader and the face and future of India, Patna Sahib MP said.
Within hours of joining, the Congress fielded Sinha from Bihar's Patna Sahib seat, where he will contest against BJP leader and Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad.
Sinha had met Rahul Gandhi on March 28.
Attacking the BJP's top leadership, Sinha said, "Today there is no place left for dialogue in the BJP anymore," and if one speaks the truth he is termed as a rebel.
"If speaking the truth is rebellion, then I am a rebel," he said addressing a press conference at the Congress headquarters here.
Party veterans are not being looked after in the BJP and are being sent to 'margdarshak mandal', he alleged. "In the BJP, democracy has slowly and surely turned into dictatorship. The party has become a one-man show and a two-men army," Sinha alleged without naming anyone.
He claimed whenever he tried to make a point, he was called a "traitor".
That Sinha was not happy with the BJP and the government led by it was clear from the past few months, during which he put out several tweets critical of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the party and the government. In his tweets, he has also been full of praise for Gandhi and RJD leaders, including its jailed president Lalu Prasad.
In an apparent reference to Modi, Sinha said, "People have called your bluff and understood your hollow promises. You have been exposed."
Sinha said the BJP has now been "exposed" and people can see through its "hollow" promises.
"It's with a heavy heart and immense pain that I finally bid adieu to my old party, for reasons best known to all of us, on 6th April, which also happens to be the Sansthapna Diwas (foundation day) of BJP.
"I don't hold any ill will for our people as they were like my family and I was groomed in this party," Sinha later tweeted.
He alleged that, like BJP's founding member L K Advani, other stalwarts including Jaswant Singh and Yashwant Sinha were not given respect and not "treated properly" in the party.
He also attacked the Modi government, alleging, "everything happens from the Prime Minister's Office...ministers can't work freely."
Terming demonetisation as "probably the world's biggest scam", Sinha said, "It was a mindless decision...Several people died and we were told it was normal."
Sinha also said the country would have transformed if the money splurged by the BJP on its publicity campaign was spent on development.
Lauding the Congress' proposed Nyuntam Aay Yojana (Nyay) scheme, he said the country has not seen such thing in past.
"I am hopeful that the Grand Old National Party which I'm stepping into, will provide me with opportunities to serve our people, society and nation in terms of unity, prosperity, progress, development, and glory," he also tweeted.
He hailed the Congress as a "party of great nation-builders and luminaries like Mahatma Gandhi, Nehru, Patel and many others" and exuded confidence that the grand alliance in Bihar will emerge victorious.
"Under the present President of Congress the very dynamic, able, tried, tested and successful face of today and tomorrow's India, Rahul Gandhi, I hope, wish and pray that I'm heading into a better direction. Long live democracy and the Congress party, along with the alliance of Lalu and Tejasvi's RJD. Long live our great India. Jai Hind," he also tweeted.
Congress General Secretary K C Venugopal, chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala and AICC in-charge for party's Bihar unit Shaktisinh Gohil welcomed Sinha into the party fold.
Venugopal said Sinha was "in wrong party" earlier and has "now joined a right party".
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Kerala polls: ‘People rejected 10 years of misrule’, says AICC gen secy
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): AICC General Secretary K C Venugopal on Monday said the Congress-led UDF’s sweeping victory in the Kerala Assembly polls was a clear verdict against the “arrogance”, corruption, and nepotism of the CPI(M)-led LDF government headed by CM Pinarayi Vijayan.
Addressing a press conference as counting of votes for all 140 Assembly constituencies neared completion, Venugopal said the outcome reflected public anger against what he termed “10 years of misrule” by the Left government.
He claimed that Vijayan’s victory in his home constituency, Dharmadam, was “only technical”, alleging that the CM trailed the UDF candidate in the initial rounds of counting and failed to secure a majority in his own village.
“He just escaped. He suffered a setback even in his home turf. He was the only person who did not realise the people’s mood in this election,” Venugopal said.
Alleging that the CPI(M) and the LDF had resorted to “communal and opportunistic politics”, he further claimed that the ruling front had entered into a “secret understanding” with the BJP in a bid to retain power for a third consecutive term.
He said that when a government driven by power and arrogance attempts to align with anyone to stay in office, even its own cadre turns against it.
Referring to the results, Venugopal said that while the UDF expected rebel CPI(M) leaders, including K Kunhikrishnan in Payyannur, to impact the vote share, their victories came as a surprise.
Describing the UDF’s performance as a “historic victory”, he attributed it to coordinated teamwork, grassroots mobilisation, and the dedication of party workers, adding that the alliance accepted the mandate “with humility”.
Venugopal also credited Rahul Gandhi’s campaign guarantees, calling them a “trump card” that helped voters focus on real issues and reject what he described as the LDF’s “false narratives”.
He claimed that the Congress witnessed one of its lowest levels of rebellion in this election, which contributed to the alliance’s strong performance.
The senior Congress leader further alleged that the BJP managed to win two seats with the help of the CPI(M), and asserted that forces attempting to divide society on communal lines should “learn a lesson” from Kerala’s verdict.
“This is the real Kerala story,” he said.
On the question of the next Chief Minister, Venugopal said the party leadership would decide at the earliest after due consultations.
The counting of votes began on Monday morning for all 140 Assembly constituencies in Kerala, where the Congress-led UDF secured a decisive majority, defeating the CPI(M)-led LDF, which was seeking an unprecedented third consecutive term in office.
Congress MP Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) posts, "Thank you to my brothers and sisters in Keralam for a truly decisive mandate. Congratulations to every UDF leader and worker for a hard-fought, well-run campaign. As I said before, Keralam has the talent, Keralam has the potential… pic.twitter.com/6T4IZbEmp4
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) May 4, 2026
