Karnataka: BJP-JD(S) hold their first joint coordination meeting

Former PM HD Deve Gowda said there are no leaders other than PM Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah who can solve all the problems at the national level.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janata Dal (Secular) held their first joint coordination meeting on Friday and passed a resolution to contest the parliamentary election together, aiming to win all 28 seats in Karnataka.

BJP and JD(S) passed a resolution to contest the parliamentary election together at their first joint coordination meeting on Friday. (HT)

According to people familiar with the matter, the meeting was attended by former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda, ex-chief minister BS Yediyurappa, Karnataka BJP election in-charge Radha Mohan Das, former CM and JD(S) state president HD Kumaraswamy, and Leader of the Opposition R Ashoka.

Following the meeting, BJP state president BY Vijayendra, said, “In view of making Prime Minister Narendra Modi the Prime Minister for the third time, former PM Deve Gowda has blessed us... His blessings have brought great strength to the alliance. This meeting should have been held long ago. After the meeting, we are confident of achieving great results in the Lok Sabha election.”

During the meeting Deve Gowda said that there are no leaders other than Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah who can solve all the problems at the national level.

JD(S) joined the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in September last year. As part of the seat-sharing deal in the state, the BJP will contest in 25 constituencies and the JD(S) in three.

Noting that the role of former chief minister and BJP stalwart B S Yediyurappa was very important, Gowda said he must forget whatever had happened in the past “because the time is very short”.

“Our opponents are so strong. Don’t think that we are going to win all the 28 seats unless and until we forget what all had happened in the past and our differences,” the 91-year-old said at a coordination meeting of the two parties.

“Only Modi and Shah are the two leaders who can solve all the problems at the national level,” the nonagenarian leader said. Gowda cautioned the BJP and JD(S) leaders against taking the Congress lightly as he claimed, the Mallikarjun Kharge-led outfit has “huge financial resources.”

“In the present Congress government (in Karnataka), money reserve is one of the major areas for them. Can you challenge? Entire Bengaluru and every department are in the hands of one leader. It is not easy to challenge the Congress’s resources. Not so simple,” he said.

According to Gowda, no one knows how much money has been pumped in by the Congress in Mandya from where his son and former Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy is contesting as the BJP-JD(S) alliance candidate.

Speaking on the occasion, Yediyurappa expressed confidence that the BJP-JD(S) alliance will win all the 28 seats.

Yediyurappa also hit out at the Congress government for allegedly stopping all the development works.

With PTI inputs