Vijender Singh, India’s first Olympic medallist in boxing and a Congress leader, joined the BJP.

Singh had fought the 2019 Lok Sabha election unsuccessfully from the South Delhi constituency as a Congress candidate. His name was doings the rounds for the last few days as the party’s nominee from Mathura, from where actor and incumbent MP Hema Malini is contesting again.

Singh comes from the Jat community, which has political influence in a large number of seats in Haryana, the state he comes from, western Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan.