BJP chief Rajnath Singh welcomes Satpal Maharaj (Left) in BJP

Satpal Maharaj, a parliamentarian and powerful leader from Uttarakhand, joined the BJP today after more than 20 years as a member of the Congress.The politician, whose real name is Satpal Singh Rawat, was formally welcomed to the BJP by its president Rajnath Singh. The new inductee said the party's prime ministerial candidate, Narendra Modi, "will take India ahead of China".Satpal Maharaj, 62, has a massive following in the hill state of Uttarkhand. He was upset with the Congress when it selected Harish Rawat as the chief minister in February this year. More recently, the candidates he recommended for the Garhwal region were not cleared by the Congress.His wife Amrita Rawat is a Congress legislator in the state assembly. Satpal Maharaj reportedly has the support of 10 of the party's 34 legislators in Uttarkhand that gives him the power to put the Congress government in the state in jeopardy.

In 1995, he left the Congress but returned four years later.