New Delhi Devender Singh Rana, and Surjit Singh Slathia, the two prominent faces of the Jammu & Kashmir National Conference (NC) of the Jammu region joined the BJP at the party headquarters in New Delhi on Monday.
Devender and Slathia had resigned from the prime membership of JKNC on Sunday.
Both the leaders joined the BJP in presence of Union Ministers Hardeep Singh Puri, Dharmendra Pradhan, Jitendra Singh.
BJP J&K Inchrage and General Secretary Tarun Chugh, Former Dy CM of J&K Dr Nirmal Singh, BJP President(J&K) Ravinder Raina were present on the occasion in Delhi.
Three time MLA from Nagrota Constituency Devender Singh Rana was the Provincial President of JKNC and the party’s face in the Jammu region.
Addressing a press conference after joining the party here, Devender Singh Rana said the Political narrative must start from Jammu for the entire Union territory to strengthen its echoes and culture.
“This narrative not only helps Jammu and Kashmir but the entire country. We are sure in the national interest the party will take people of Jammu and Kashmir forward,” he added.
He said there are some people who are trying to weaken the echoes but they will not succeed in it.
“The Jammu region has hugely suffered on all these counts over the decades and Jammu declaration is a way forward for respecting the urges and aspirations of all the people in Jammu and Kashmir” he said.
On January 30 Rana had proposed the ‘Jammu declaration’ a charter to forge unity and reinforce trust between diverse communities and divergent regions of Jammu and Kashmir.
Welcoming the two leaders into the party fold, Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, said, “Both the leader will take forward the party development agenda initiated by the central government in Jammu and Kashmir,”
Devender was considered as a close aide to Omar Abdullah and served as his political advisor when he was the chief minister from 2009 to 2014.
In 2014, Rana and Slathia had won from the Nagrota and Vijaypur constituencies respectively on a JKNC ticket.