Boxer and former Congress leader Vijender Singh on Wednesday joined the BJP, a day after he reposted Rahul Gandhi’s post on X hitting out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Singh, a vocal critic of the Modi government on the farmers’ and wrestlers’ issues, justified the change of heart that happened in just 24 hours to a news channel, saying: “I slept after reposting (Rahul’s post slamming Modi) and when I woke up, I felt I was doing wrong. I felt that now I should go in the right direction and so I joined the BJP.”

The remark went viral on social media platforms.

Singh on Tuesday had reposted Rahul’s post on X in which the Congress MP had taken an oblique swipe at Modi. “This time the ‘Papa of Propaganda’ is not going to melt down, the public itself is ready to show him the mirror,” Rahul had posted, attaching a video of a woman voter slamming the government.

The Haryana-based boxer-turned-politician hails from the dominant Jat community, and the BJP hopes his joining would help the party counter the anger in the community over the farmers’ and wrestlers’ protests.

The BJP could field Singh in the elections from one of the seats in Haryana.