The Sharad Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) Tuesday said former Congress veteran and ex-Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan joining the BJP was not surprising, but rued that certain leaders who have the power and capacity to fight the saffron party are actually succumbing to its pressures.

In a setback to the Congress ahead of Lok Sabha elections, Chavan Monday tendered his resignation from the party. On Tuesday, he joined the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at an event in Mumbai that was attended by senior BJP leader and Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra Devendra Fadnavis.