JD(S) won’t join NDA, says Karnataka unit chief

Though the BJP declined to comment on the issue, party’s state spokesperson Prakash S said the JD(S) does have a national president, who will take a call.

Bengaluru: Disquiet grew within the Janata Dal (Secular) over its alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, with the party’s Karnataka unit president CM Ibrahim on Monday saying the JD(S) will not join the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA), defying the decision taken by party supremo and former prime minister HD Deve Gowda.

CM Ibrahim, a former Union minister, said he would form a core committee to meet Deve Gowda and convey the decision taken at meeting on Monday. (Savitha)

Urging Deve Gowda to reconsider his decision to ally with the BJP, Ibrahim hinted at a possible split in the JD(S) by claiming several party legislators were in touch with him. The veteran leader said he and his supporters represented the “original” JD(S) for being “secular” and that being the state president he can take a decision about the party in Karnataka.

“Our first decision is that the JD(S) will not go with the NDA. The second decision was a request to Deve Gowda that he should not give his consent to this alliance,” Ibrahim told reporters after a meeting with some party leaders and supporters.

Ibrahim, a former Union minister, said he would form a core committee to meet Deve Gowda and convey the decision taken at meeting on Monday.

The meeting called by Ibrahim, titled “Chitana-Manthana”, was convened in Bengaluru, notably without photographs of former chief minister and Deve Gowda’s son HD Kumaraswamy. People familiar with the details said several speakers in the meeting demanded removal of Kumaraswamy and his son Nikhil Kumaraswamy from the party.

“They (Deve Gowda and his family) didn’t call us (for consultation before the alliance), so they don’t have the right to go (for the alliance talks). We will communicate the decision,” he said, adding that the core committee will meet soon at the Palace grounds.

On September 22, Kumaraswamy announced the decision to be part of the NDA after meeting Union home minister Amit Shah and BJP president JP Nadda in New Delhi. The two parties have come together to take on the Congress in the next year’s general election.

Claiming that his faction represents the “original JD(S)” due to its “secular” stance, Ibrahim said: “Deve Gowda became prime minister due to secular credentials. We cannot be in an alliance with the BJP. We have to defeat the NDA and we are ready to support Congress. We are the original JD(S) and nobody can remove me.”

Ibrahim, who has served as the Union minister for civil aviation, tourism and information and broadcasting during 1996-1998, beseeched Deve Gowda not to consent to the alliance with the BJP, pointing at opposition to the decision from party’s units in Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra where several leaders have quit the JD(S) recently.

“In Karnataka, however, we still have affection for you. You are a father figure. We will tell him (Gowda) that we should not have any relation with the BJP,” Ibrahim added.

When asked about the course of action if Deve Gowda and Kumaraswamy do not concur with his decision, Ibrahim said that in his capacity as state president, it will be his responsibility to decide the party’s fate in the state.

“I am the state president. I have to decide about my party in the state, which I will take. Already we have decided that we will not go with the BJP. What else is there more than this?” he said. “If Deve Gowda and Kumaraswamy have decided to go with the BJP then let them go.”

Reacting to Ibrahim’s statements, Kumaraswamy, who is the second in command in the JD(S), said the veteran leader is “very independent” and “we will wait for his decision”.

“There is one decision taken by the party workers, and all leaders. In that background, he (Ibrahim) deliberated with his supporters in the meeting convened by him. He is completely free to make his decision,” the former chief minister said.

Though the BJP declined to comment on the issue, party’s state spokesperson Prakash S said the JD(S) does have a national president, who will take a call on this matter. “It is ultimately up to the JD(S) to handle this situation,” he said.

The BJP and JD(S) joined hands for the Lok Sabha elections months after facing huge defeat at the hands of the Congress in the Karnataka assembly elections in May. The BJP managed to win 66 seats, while the JD(S) was reduced to 19 seats in the 224-member assembly. The Congress won 135 seats with a vote share of nearly 43%. The JD(S) did not only lose seats but also lost a considerable vote share in the elections.