SMC councillor threatens to quit BJP with three others, changes his mind a day later

However, on Monday, Vavliya put up another post, where he said, “I received a call from senior BJP leader in Gandhinagar who assured that all the demands will be fulfilled. After getting the assurance, we have decided to defer our decision of leaving BJP.”

Speaking with The Indian Express, Vavliya did not reveal the names of other councillors but said, “While staying in the BJP, we made suggestions and requests of internal roads in different residential societies falling in Ward. 4 and pending issue of filling (or covering) the creek passing in my ward should be done.”

“Nobody was taking this issue seriously, so I and three other councillors who had switched to the BJP from the AAP in April decided to quit the party. On Sunday evening, I got assurance from a leader of BJP from Gandhinagar on call as he assured me all such work would be done soon. After getting such assurance, I discussed with three other councillors and decided to defer the decision of quitting BJP. I don’t want any post in the party and our motto is to get the public work done, so that they get benefit,” he further added.

Meanwhile, on Sunday evening, in response to Vavliya’s comment, Leader of Opposition of SMC and AAP councillor Dharmesh Bhanderi told The Indian Express, “We are ready to welcome Dharmendra and others to our party. We know that Dharmendra will never feel comfortable in BJP, due to his ideology. He was earlier in the Transport Committee of SMC, and had raised many issues.”

After Vavliya’s post on Monday, Bhanderi said, “This may be pressure tactic from Vavaliya, who wants to get a post in the SMC… the two-and-a-half year term of the mayor, deputy mayor, standing committee chairman, ruling party leader and others have ended…”

In April, six SMC AAP councillors – Ashok Dhami (Housing Project), Kiran Khokhani (Social Welfare and Recreational Cultural Committee), Ghanshyam Makwana (Light and Fire Committee), Patel Nirali (Health Committee), Dharmendra Vavliya (Transport Mobility Committee) and Advocate Swati Kayda (Law Committee) – resigned from the AAP and joined BJP in the presence of Minister of State for Home Harsh Sanghavi and Education Minister Praful Panseriya at Shri Kamalam, the party’s headquarters in Surat.

In their resignation letters, which were widely shared on social media, the councillors stated they had left the AAP “willingly” and nobody had “lured them or pressurised them”.