Vibhakar Shastri is son of Hari Krishna Shastri and grandson of former prime minister Lal Bahadur Shastri.

Lok Sabha Election 2024: In yet another blow to the Uttar Pradesh Congress ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, Vibhakar Shastri, the grandson of former Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri, resigned from the party and joined rival BJP on Wednesday.

“Hon’ble Congress President Shri Kharge ji! Respected Sir, I hereby tender my resignation from the primary membership of Indian National Congress, Regards, Vibhakar Shastri,” the now-former Congress leader wrote on X.

Vibhakar Shastri said Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Sabka saath sabka vikas’ slogan, the guiding spirit of the BJP governments at the Centre and in the states, is attracting everybody.

आज @BJP4India के कार्यकर्ता के रुप में दामन थामा। देश के यशस्वी प्रधानमंत्री आदरणीय श्री @narendramodi जी के नेतृत्व में भारत माता के सेवा के लिए सदैव तत्पर रहेंगे। @BJP4India के राष्ट्रीय उपाध्यक्ष व यूपी के प्रभारी आदरणीय श्री @PandaJay जी, @BJP4UP के अध्यक्ष श्री… pic.twitter.com/IOhodqL0fL

— Vibhakar Shastri (@VShastri_) February 14, 2024

According to an official statement by the Uttar Pradesh BJP, Vibhakar Shastri  joined the saffron party in presence of the party’s state unit chief Bhupinder Singh and Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak.

Notably, Vibhakar Shastri’s brother, Siddharth Nath Singh, is a BJP MLA, representing the Allahabad West constituency.

Shastri’s exodus is the latest in the series of prominent exits from the Congress in the last few years with the likes of f Ashok Chavan, Milind Deora, Baba Siddiqui, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Jitin Prasad, Priyanka Chaturvedi, Sushmita Dev, R P N Singh and Jaiveer Shergill, among others joining other parties, including arch rivals Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Who is Vibhakar Shastri?

Vibhakar Shastri is son of Hari Krishna Shastri and grandson of former prime minister Lal Bahadur Shastri. He has unsuccessfully contested Lok Sabha polls in the past from Fatehpur Lok Sabha seat in Uttar Pradesh.

UP Deputy CM Brijesh Pathak hailed Shastri joining the BJP’s ranks as a “welcome message for social workers”. Pathak said that Vibhakar Shastri hails from the former prime minister’s family and it is natural that the party would benefit from the development.

Vibhakar’s brother and Allahabad West BJP MLA Siddharth Nath Singh, also welcomed his decision to join the saffron fold.

(With PTI inputs)