Army veteran, sportsman Major Surendra Poonia joins BJP

Army veteran and international sportsman Major Surendra Poonia on Saturday joined the Bharatiya Janata Party. He was inducted into the party fold in the presence of BJP general secretary JP Nadda and senior leader Ram Lal.

Poonia joined the BJP just a day after former cricketer Gautam Gambhir joined the party. After joining the party, Poonia tweeted stating, "I have joined the Bharatiya Janata Party to serve the nation and our people. It is a great honour for me to support and stand with the idea of 'Nation First' against the idea of 'Family First' from party's platform which is led by the honourable Prime Minister Narendra Modi."

Major Surendra Poonia is a recipient of Vishisht Seva Medal. He has also won numerous international awards and has also served as a Special Forces Officer in the Indian Army. He had contested in the 2014 parliamentary election from Sikar Lok Sabha of Rajasthan. 

(With inputs from agencies.)