Key leaders who deserted Congress in the recent past

Milind Deora, son of Congress stalwart Murli Deora, is the latest Congress leader to desert the grand old party led by Mallikarjun Kharge. Here is a look at the prominent leaders who quit the Congress.

Hyderabad: Former Union Minister and Lok Sabha MP Milind Deora on Sunday joined the Shiv Sena led by Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde in Mumbai. Milind Deora, a former Union Minister and a MP from Mumbai South is the latest leader from the Congress who snapped ties with the party.

Milind Deora is the son of former Union Minister and Congress stalwart late Murli Deora, who was an influential leader in south Mumbai, the most affluent part of Mumbai, the megacity.

Milind was elected as an MP from South Mumbai and was the Minister of State for Communications and Information and Technology from 2012-14. In the recent past, former Union Minister Ratanjit Pratap Narain Singh, who was elected from the Kushinagar Lok Sabha constituency in 2009 polls, quit the party led by Mallikarjun Kharge in January 2022 and he joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Another key Congress leader who quit the party is Jyotiraditya Scindia, who is currently the Union Civil Aviation Minister in the Narendra Modi-led government. Scindia, who hails from Madhya Pradesh, quit the Congress and joined the BJP in 2020. Scindia also played a key role in ensuring that the BJP retains power in Madhya Pradesh, where state Assembly elections were held.

Anil Antony, son of Congress stalwart and former Union Defence Minister AK Antony, also quit the party and joined the BJP. Antony hails from Kerala and was drafted into the saffron party by Union Minister and senior BJP leader Piyush Goyal. Former Union Minister Jitin Prasada, who was considered close to former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi, also bid adieu to it and joined the BJP. Jitin, a Congress leader, had praised the BJP while joining it.

Alpesh Thakor, who was a Congress MLA from Gujarat, also quit the party and later joined the BJP. He won from Gandhinagar South constituency in the last Gujarat polls. Hardik Patel, a Patidar leader in Gujarat, also quit Congress. Congress leaders from Punjab Ashwani Kumari, a former Union Minister and Sunil Jakhar, also quit the party.