Veteran Gujarat Congress MLA resigns, may join BJP

Gandhinagar, July 3 (IANS) Senior Gujarat Congress MLA and prominent Koli community leader Kunwarji Bawalia on Tuesday tendered his resignation as a legislator as well as from the party.

Bawalia, a six-time MLA from Jasdan constituency in Rajkot district, handed over his papers to Gujarat Assembly Speaker Rajendra Trivedi.

Bawalia was elected to the Lok Sabha from Rajkot during the 2009 elections.

The Koli community leader, who has been sulking ever since the December 2017 elections for being ignored for any key party position, is likely to join the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and, sources believe, could be inducted into the Vijay Rupani cabinet.

His resignation comes days after another leader from Rajkot, former legislator Indranil Rajyaguru, quit alleging that the Congress leadership ignored the aspirations of several party seniors.