Olympic medallist boxer and former Congress leader Vijender Singh on Wednesday joined the Bharatiya Janata Party ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

Singh, while joining the Hindutva party in the presence of its general secretary Vinod Tawde in New Delhi, said that it was like a homecoming.

“I would like to thank Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP for the respect that sportspersons get under this government,” the boxer said. “I would like to be a part of this government, help people and show them the right path. I am the same Vijender that I was and will speak my mind.”

Singh, who won a bronze medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, had joined the Congress in 2019. He had contested the Lok Sabha elections that year from South Delhi but lost to BJP leader Ramesh Bidhuri.

The Lok Sabha elections will be held in seven phases from April 19 to June 1. The results will be announced on June 4.