Former Congress Minister Baburao Chinchansur from Kalaburagi district joined the BJP on Wednesday.
He is the second leader from the district to leave the Congress for its biggest rival, after Malikayya Guttedar did so in the run-up to the May 2018 Assembly polls. Mr. Guttedar contested on BJP ticket in the polls while Mr. Chinchansur contested as a Congress candidate; both were defeated. State BJP president B.S. Yeddyurappa said the party has been strengthened in Kalaburagi with Mr. Chinchansur joining it. Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti, Union Minister for State, came down from Delhi to welcome him into the party fold.
Mr. Chinchansur cryptically told presspersons to watch out for the results of the Lok Sabha elections in the district next year. Senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge has represented the constituency since 2009.