UP: Samajwadi Party leader Ravi Prakash Verma joins Congress

UP: Samajwadi Party leader Ravi Prakash Verma joins Congress

Days after quitting the Samajwadi Party, three-time MP Ravi Prakash Verma on November 6 joined the Congress, which he credited with "whatever development has taken place in the country". Verma along with his supporters took the primary membership of the Congress in the presence of the party's state unit president Ajay Rai.

Speaking on the occasion, Verma cited the challenges facing the nation and alleged that the BJP has brought the country to the brink of destruction. "Whatever development has taken place in the country is the contribution of the Congress. Today, there is a wave of Congress and I want it to form a government so that people can get relief from their problems," he said.

"I have joined the Congress today with full devotion and honesty and with a resolve to strengthen the party organisation. Whatever responsibility will be assigned to me, I will discharge it with full devotion," Verma said. Verma had quit the Samajwadi Party in Lakhimpur Kheri on November 3.

In a letter addressed to Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav, he claimed that he was unable to work for the party due to an adverse internal party atmosphere. Considered a prominent OBC leader in electoral politics, Verma has been the national general secretary of the Samajwadi Party. He was elected from Kheri in the 1998, 1999 and 2004 Lok Sabha elections and was later elected as the Rajya Sabha member on the party's ticket.