Arvinder Singh Lovely move to BJP was in pipeline for long

BJP president Amit Shah welcomes Arvinder Singh Lovely into the party Tuesday. “It is simply about two leaderships. One that is available for its workers and one that has no time,” Lovely said. PTI

Arvinder Singh Lovely was in talks with senior BJP leaders such as Harsh Vardhan and Vijay Goel even after the Aam Aadmi Party came to power in the capital in 2015, but a decision to join the party did not materialise at the time, sources told The Indian Express. A senior party leader said that this time, Lovely agreed to join the BJP “without any conditions”. BJP MP Maheish Girri is also learnt to have played a part in him joining the party, the leader said.

Sources said that Lovely’s move has worried not just the Congress but some BJP leaders too. “It will now be Lovely who will help consolidate Sikh votes for the party,” a senior party leader said.

Senior BJP leaders claimed that several other “senior Congress leaders” have also queued up to join their party. “The coming days may see more MLAs, who served as ministers, line up to join the BJP. At least five-six others are in talks with us. But the call has to be taken by the national president,” said a BJP leader.

But some in the BJP are learnt to have expressed caution that in aiming for a “Congress-mukt Bharat”, the party should not fall in the trap of becoming a “Congress-yukt BJP”.