Former CPI(M) leader and minister Abdus Sattar on Monday joined the Congress, stating it is the only party which can fight against the "communal onslaught" of the BJP.
Sattar, who joined the Congress in presence of the party's state president Somen Mitra and in-charge of Bengal Gaurav Gogoi, said he has not renewed CPI(M) membership since 2017 and stayed away from politics for the last two years.
"I joined the Congress, as I feel it is the only party which can fight against the communal onslaught of the BJP," Sattar, who was West Bengal Minister of State for Minorities Development during the Left Front regime, said.
Mitra said Sattar joining the Congress would strengthen the party in the days to come.