KPCC chief’s brother joins BJP in Kannur

Shaji V. Joseph, brother of Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president Sunny Joseph, joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at a function held at Puthiyatheru in Kannur on Thursday. He was formally inducted into the party by Sadanand Shet Tanavade, former Goa BJP president and Rajya Sabha MP.

Addressing the gathering, Mr. Joseph said he was drawn to the ‘development-oriented politics’ of Narendra Modi and hence decided to leave the Congress and join the BJP. He began his public life with the Kerala Students Union (KSU) in 1975 at the Ulikkal panchayat high school and later served as the Ulikkal mandalam president of the Youth Congress and the Congress. He remained an active party worker for years.

He alleged that the Congress’s “anti-development stance and appeasement politics” had become intolerable. He maintained that he had not sought any position and that his decision was based on ideological conviction.

Mr. Joseph also clarified that there was no difference of opinion with Mr. Sunny Joseph, adding that a change in political stance was a matter of personal freedom.