Gandhinagar: C. J. Chavda, former Congress MLA from the Vijapur assembly seat, who resigned from the State legislative assembly on Friday, is set to join the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on February 4th.

A senior leader and consistent winner, Chavda will be joining the saffron ranks of the ruling BJP in the presence of Gujarat BJP chief CR Patil. Former Taluka presidents and members of the Taluka Panchayat are also likely to join the BJP along with Chavda. Former Taluka President Chandan Sinh and Vijay Patel, along with former District Panchayat members Hitendrasinh Parmar and Harshad Patel, will be joining the BJP after leaving the Congress party in Vijapur.

Chavda, a former Deputy Collector, won assembly elections in the State in 2002, 2017, and 2022. He had lost the assembly poll in 2007 and the Lok Sabha election against Amit Shah in the Gandhinagar Lok Sabha seat in 2019. Popularly known as CJ Chavda, his full name is Chaturji Jawanji Chavda.

In his reaction after handing over his resignation to State Assembly Speaker Shankar Chaudhary, Chavda mentioned that he was upset with the party over remarks made by party leaders regarding the inauguration of the Ram Mandir. Chavda expressed that there is a wave of happiness over the Ram Janmabhoomi Mandir’s inauguration in the country. He further stated that he had joined the Congress party when he was close to becoming an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer. Chavda said he would decide on his political future after consulting with voters and supporters in the Vijapur constituency. DeshGujarat