Jit Lal Bhatti, the AAP leader, who had contested from the Adampur Assembly segment in 2022, joined the BJP at the party’s state headquarters in Chandigarh.
Bhatti was formally inducted into the party by BJP Punjab State President Kewal Singh Dhillon.
Dhillon welcomed him and expressed confidence that his grassroots connect and public support would further strengthen the party in the Doaba region, especially in the Adampur constituency.
The move is being seen as an attempt by the BJP to gain leaders in rural areas and increase its presence in villages.
Bhatti had polled almost 29,000 votes, getting almost 25 per cent vote-share in the constituency and coming third after Congress’ Sukhwinder Kotli and SAD’s Pawan Tinu.
Tinu had left SAD in 2024 to join AAP. In June last year, the AAP had removed Bhatti as its halqa incharge in Adampur, replacing him with Tinu.
Before entering active politics, he served for 36 years in Punjab National Bank as a Supervisor, retiring in 2015.
Along with Bhatti, several prominent political and social leaders also joined the BJP, including Urmila Devi, Ex-Vice President Nagar Council Bhogpur; Vidwant Kaur, Ex-Senior Vice President Nagar Council Bhogpur; Usha Rani, Sarpanch; Raj Rani, senior AAP worker; Kulwant Singh Karu Larai, Ex-Sarpanch Larai; Manoj Kumar, Ex-Sikh Kranti Pradhan; Satnam Singh Mankotia, Block President Adampur; Kulwinder Singh, Ex-Serviceman; Amarjit Singh, City President Bhogpur; Vijay Kumar and Ajay Kumar, AAP Ward Presidents; Rakesh Pinku, Ex-Councillor; Tarsem Lal, Block President; and Vinod Kumar, Village President.
Welcoming the new entrants, Dhillon said the BJP continues to gain strength across Punjab. Bhatti said he was inspired by the BJP’s commitment to good governance, nationalism, and public welfare, and pledged to work tirelessly to strengthen the party at the grassroots level across Punjab.
