Bhopal, Aug 9 (IANS): Ahead of the assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh, former dacoit Malkhan Singh joined the Congress in the presence of State Congress President Kamal Nath.

Apart from Malkhan Singh, a large number of people took membership of the Congress in a function organised at the state office of the Congress. Malkhan Singh had joined the BJP in 2014. Later, he resigned from the BJP and joined Progressive Samajwadi Party (Lohia).

Now Malkhan Singh has joined the Congress and has claimed that he will campaign for the Congress in the upcoming assembly elections in the state slated this year, which will wipe out the BJP and form the Congress government. Presently Malkhan Singh's wife is a Sarpanch from Singayai Panchayat of Aaron area of ??Guna district, she won the election unopposed.

There was a time when Malkhan Singh was counted among the dreaded dacoits of Chambal. There was a reward of more than one lakh on him, while more than a hundred cases were registered, including kidnapping, murder, dacoity etc.

Malkhan Singh surrendered in 1982 and spent almost six years in jail. After being acquitted of all the cases in 1989, he walked out of jail and since then he is active in politics.