KOCHI: Former Kerala High Court judges P N Ravindran and V Chitambaresh and 18 others, including several Mahila Congress workers, joined BJP here on Sunday. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman welcomed them into the party in the presence of BJP state president K Surendran at the function held to accord reception to ‘Vijaya Yatra’ at Tripunithura.
Chitambaresh could not attend the function as he is in Delhi. The names of both former HC judges were recently in news after allegedly signing a letter addressed to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, professing support to the ‘love jihad’ law. Chitambaresh said he has been an active ABVP worker during his student days at Victoria College, Palakkad.
‘I’ve been a fellow traveller of BJP’
“I have been a fellow traveller of the BJP. Now, I have officially embraced the party. I couldn’t attend the function in Kochi as I am in Delhi,” Chitambaresh told TNIE.Among the others who joined the partry are former DGP Venugopal Nair, Admiral B R Menon and former general manager of BPCL Somachoodan. “Former Mahila Congress worker Shiji Roy along with 12 other Congress workers also joined BJP,” said a statement by BJP spokesperson here.