Boxer Vijender Singh joins BJP

New Delhi: Vijender Singh, India’s first Olympic medallist in boxing who took a plunge in politics in April 2019 by joining the Congress, switched to the BJP on Wednesday.

Addressing a joint press conference with BJP leaders at the party headquarters here, Singh praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi and said that the respect for Indian sportspersons has increased in the country and abroad since the BJP came to power at the Centre “I am the same old Vijender. Whatever I would feel wrong, I would call it wrong. I will call it right if I feel it is right,” said Singh who had been a vocal critic of the BJP and had come out in support of farmers’ protests and wrestlers’ stir, often expressing his views on social media.

A number of leaders have switched their parties ahead of Lok Sabha elections though Singh’s entry into the BJP is among those that may have surprised many. Singh joined the BJP in the presence of party national general secretary Vinod Tawde and other senior leaders of the party at its headquarters here.