Former Karnataka CM Sadananda Gowda announces retirement from electoral politics

In 2021, Gowda stepped down from his roles as Union minister following orders from Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a cabinet reshuffle

Former Karnataka chief minister and senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader DV Sadananda Gowda on Wednesday announced that he has decided to retire from electoral politics.

DV Sadananda Gowda currently represents the Bengaluru North constituency in the Lok Sabha. (PIB/File photo)

Addressing reporters in Hassan district, Gowda said: “I have decided not to continue in electoral politics. In my 30 years of political career, the party has given me everything. I served as a member of legislative assembly (MLA) for 10 years, 20 years as member of parliament (MP), one year as a chief minister, and over four years as party’s state unit president and cabinet minister for seven years in Narendra Modi government. If I aspire for more, I would be called a selfish.”

The BJP leader currently represents the Bengaluru North constituency in the Lok Sabha. The announcement comes amid rumours that the party will not field him during the 2024 elections.

In 2021, Gowda stepped down from his roles as Union minister following orders from Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a cabinet reshuffle.

Besides being the chemicals and fertilisers minister in the Narendra Modi government, Gowda has also held portfolios such as railways, law, and statistics and programme implementation.

Gowda’s announcement came after he conducted a crop loss survey in Hassan district — a part of the BJP’s efforts to assess the impact of the drought situation in the state. The findings collected from the different BJP survey teams are expected to be submitted to Union home minister Amit Shah.

Gowda served as the chief minister of Karnataka from August 2011 to July 2012, following the resignation of his mentor Yediyurappa in an illegal mining case. He was replaced by Jagdish Shettar.

Replying to a question, Gowda said that in every political party, there would be at least 10% of people ready to jump to another party for power. “If the BJP comes to power, they will jump to the BJP. And if Congress comes to power, they will again jump to Congress. Such people are in all parties, including the BJP,” he said.

Regarding the alliance with the Janata Dal (Secular) [JD(s)] for the Lok Sabha elections, Gowda said that central leaders of the party have made a decision, though he expressed the need for clear guidelines on its implementation in the state. He acknowledged the potential challenges faced by party workers when suddenly contesting an election alongside a party they had been opposing for years.

Addressing the delay in appointing state leaders and an Opposition leader, Gowda admitted that it had been an embarrassing issue for the party. He mentioned that party leaders have collected individual opinions on the matter, and they anticipate an announcement after the completion of the five state elections.

Even though Gowda has claimed he is retiring from electoral politics voluntarily in June, Gowda also responded to rumours that 13 incumbent BJP MPs, including himself, would not receive party tickets for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

He had called upon both state and central BJP leadership to counter such misleading reports, expressing dissatisfaction with media claims about the allocation of tickets to the MPs. He highlighted the detrimental impact these reports have on the morale of the incumbent MPs and their ability to fulfil their responsibilities effectively during the remaining year of their term.

Gowda had also raised concerns in October about the formation of an alliance with the JD(S), suggesting that the decision-making process had sidelined state leaders in Karnataka. He emphasized the importance of discussions at the state level and the need for careful consideration when forging an alliance with a party that had been a strong opposition force in previous elections.