New Delhi, April 4 - In a significant political development, Gaurav Vallabh, the national spokesperson of Congress, joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday, marking another setback for the Congress party amid the ongoing Lok Sabha elections. Vallabh, along with former Bihar Congress President Anil Sharma and Grand Alliance candidate Upendra Prasad, was welcomed into the BJP fold at the party's headquarters in New Delhi, in the presence of National General Secretaries Vinod Tawde and Sanjay Mayukh.

Expressing his reasons for joining the BJP, Vallabh highlighted his discontent with the Congress party's stance on the consecration of Lord Shri Ram in Ayodhya. He stated, "I am upset with the stand of the Congress Party in the consecration of Lord Shri Ram in Ayodhya. I am a Hindu by birth and a teacher by work. This stand of the party has always made me uncomfortable and troubled me. Party and many people associated with the alliance speak against Sanatan, and the party remaining silent on it is like giving tacit approval to it. These days the party is moving in the wrong direction. On one hand, we talk about caste-based census, on the other hand, they seem to be opposed to the entire Hindu society; this style of working is giving a misleading message to the public that the party is a supporter of a particular religion only. This is against the basic principles of the Congress."

Earlier on Thursday morning, Gaurav Vallabh had resigned from the primary membership of the Congress Party, alleging that the party has become directionless. His decision to join the BJP comes at a crucial juncture in the political landscape, especially with the ongoing Lok Sabha elections.