Expelled Congress MLA Jitesh Antapurkar on Saturday officially joined the BJP on Friday in the presence of Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. Antapurkar had earlier been accused of cross-voting in the Legislative Council elections. Following this, he was often seen traveling with BJP leader Ashok Chavan and avoided speaking to the media. Today, he has finally made the switch to the BJP.
Jitesh Antapurkar commented, "Since Ashok Chavan joined the BJP, significant development work has been happening in my constituency. The criticism I faced after the Legislative Council elections was disheartening. After careful consideration, I decided to take a different path. More MLAs might join us soon. The BJP government and the Mahayuti alliance are driving development."
Jitesh Antapurkar, who won the by-election two and a half years ago, is now joining the BJP. His father, Rava Saheb Antapurkar, was a long-time associate of ours. Over the past six months, Jitesh did not receive the respect he deserved in Congress. After I joined the BJP, I didn’t ask him to join, but he expressed his desire to work with us. I believe his involvement will bring success to the BJP in the future.
Devendra Fadnavis remarked, "It’s a matter of great joy that young MLA Jitesh Antapurkar from Nanded district has joined the BJP today. His father, Rava Saheb, worked closely with Ashok Chavan, and after his unfortunate demise, Jitesh won the election. He shared his experiences with us. Many of our senior leaders have been working in Nanded, and Ashok Chavan’s influence has strengthened us. Gradually, more of his associates are joining us. Despite being a sitting MLA, Jitesh made this decision, for which I am grateful. We narrowly lost the Nanded Lok Sabha seat, but that was due to a false narrative. The atmosphere has changed since then, and soon, more of Ashok Chavan’s associates will join the BJP."