Actor-politician Shatrughan Sinha, who had recently quit the BJP, on Saturday officially joined Congress during a function in the party headquarters in New Delhi. Senior Congress leader KC Venugopal and party spokesperson Randeep Surjewala were present in the function.
He earlier tweeted: "It's with a heavy heart and immense pain that I finally bid adieu to my old party, for reasons best known to all of us, on April 6, which also happens to be the Sansthapna Diwas (Foundation Day) of the BJP.
"I don't hold any ill will for our people as they were like my family and I was groomed in this party with the guidance and blessings of the stalwarts like Bharat Ratna Nanaji Deshmukh, late and great PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee and of course, our friend philosopher, ultimate leader, guru and guide LK Advani."
Sinha is a sitting Member of Parliament from Patna Sahib Lok Sabha seat in Bihar, where the Congress is an alliance with the RJD.
Sinha had on March 31 said he decided to go with the Congress as it was a national party in the "true sense" and family friend Lalu Prasad also advised him to do so.
He said leaders such as Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee, Samajwadi Party supremo Akhilesh Yadav and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener Arvind Kejriwal, among others, wanted him to join their respective parties, but he had made it clear that whatever be the situation, the constituency he would be contesting in the Lok Sabha polls would be Patna Sahib.
The actor-turned-politician, who has been criticising the Modi government for long, said it was "painful" for him to leave the BJP with which he has had such a long association, but was disturbed at the treatment meted out by the party to stalwarts such as L K Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi, Arun Shourie and Yashwant Sinha.
(With inputs from IANS)