India's future is safe in the hands of PM Modi: Jyotiraditya Scindia after joining BJP

Jyotiraditya Scindia (left) and BJP National President JP Nadda (Image: @BJPLive)

Former Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on March 11, a day after quitting the Indian National Congress.

Scindia was inducted into the BJP by party chief JP Nadda at the headquarters in New Delhi.

Addressing the press, Scindia said Congress was no longer what it used to be and that it is living in denial.

"I am saddened with the situation in Congress. Congress is no longer what it used to be. It rejects reality. In Madhya Pradesh, we had a dream when we formed the government there in 2018. But in 18 months, those dreams have been destroyed," Scindia said shortly after his induction.

“Our Prime Minister, Narendra Modi ji, has got not once, but twice, a mandate like no other. The way he has worked, I feel that the future of India is safe in the hands of PM Modi. He has worked with a vision,” the 49-year-old said.

“I have always believed that social service should be our only objective. Politics should be a medium to fulfil that, nothing more than that,” he said.

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Scindia, the head of the Gwalior royal family, also repeatedly thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah for "welcoming me into their family".

“I would like to thank Nadda ji for presenting me with this platform. I am hopeful that I will get an opportunity to serve the people. I am excited to work on the path shown by PM Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah,” he added.

Reports suggest that he could be given a Rajya Sabha ticket and be inducted into the Union Cabinet.

Scindia had tendered his resignation from the party on March 10, stating that he wanted to “look ahead at a fresh start” to “reflect and realise” the aspirations of "my people and my workers".

The Congress, however, said it had expelled Scindia for “anti-party activities”.

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The development came right after Scindia’s meeting with PM Modi and Shah, and amid high political drama in the state ahead of the Rajya Sabha elections on March 26 and the Budget Session of the Assembly scheduled for March 16.

Earlier on March 9, many MLAs — reportedly close to Scindia — were flown to Bengaluru, Karnataka where the BJP is in power.

Reports then suggested that this was a part of the internal tussle within the Congress' Madhya Pradesh unit, where tensions between the Scindia faction and Chief Minister Kamal Nath's faction had been simmering ever since the formation of the government in 2018.