Senior BJP leader Jitendra Kumar Gupta defects to Samajwadi Party with supporters

A senior BJP leader from Shravasti district has joined the Samajwadi Party in a major political development that has sent ripples through the ruling party's camp in the region.

Jitendra Kumar Gupta, popularly known as Guddu, formally switched to the Samajwadi Party in Lucknow in the presence of party supremo Akhilesh Yadav. Gupta, who served as chairman of Ikauna block three times, also held the position of former president of the Uttar Pradesh Chairman Association.

The veteran leader joined the Samajwadi Party along with hundreds of his supporters, symbolically holding the bicycle handle, the party's election symbol. Accompanying him was Nand Kishore Giri, another BJP defector, who also took membership of the Samajwadi Party.

The defection has triggered panic in the BJP camp as political equations shift in the Shravasti assembly constituency number 290. Gupta's entry into the Samajwadi Party is being seen as a significant blow to the saffron party in the district.

During a press conference, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav welcomed the new leaders into the party fold and launched a sharp attack on the BJP government.