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Karnataka Congress leader Sachidananda, aides join BJP
The move is being seen as a bid from the BJP to strengthen its footprint in the Old Mysuru region, which is a stronghold of Congress and Janata Dal (Secular)
Ahead of the 2023 assembly elections, several Congress leaders, including S Sachidananda and SL Lingaraju, joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at the party’s Malleswaram office in Bengaluru on Tuesday.
The move is being seen as a bid from the BJP to strengthen its footprint in the region, which is a stronghold of Congress and Janata Dal (Secular). The BJP is hoping to increase their grassroot-level presence with the help of second line Congress leaders like Sachidananda, who had backed Mandya independent MP Sumalatha Ambareesh during the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
A BJP leader said that the party is actively trying to get Sumalatha -- who defeated HD Kumaraswamy’s son Nikhil in the 2019 general elections – to join the party.
With his defection, it is likely that Sachidananda, who ran the campaign for Sumalatha, will take on JD(S) MLA Raveendra Srikantaiah and Ramesh Bandisidde Gowda of Congress.
Meanwhile, in Mysuru, disgruntled leaders from the JD(S) are joining hands with Siddaramaiah, offering him support to defeat JD(S) MLA GT Devegowda. On Tuesday night, a group of disgruntled JD(S) leaders including Mysuru taluk JDS former president Beerihundi Basavanna, MYMUL president Mavinahalli Siddegowda, G Madegowda, Soma Shekar held a meeting in Mysuru.
Following the meeting, they attended a Kannada Rajyotsava function, where the former Congress chief minister was a guest. On the stage, these leaders who were close supporters of GT Deve Gowda and helped him defeat Siddaramaiah in the last election offered to help Siddaramaiah win back the Chamundeshwari Assembly Constituency.
Beerihundi Basavanna said that GT Deve Gowda has let down the people of the Chamundeshwari segment by playing power politics. “He worked against the party during the Hunsur bypoll and during the polls to the legislative council from the Mysuru Local Authorities’ segment and South Graduates’ segment. As he had openly said that he would quit the party, we worked hard to strengthen the party under the guidance of Kumaraswamy. But now the party brass has allowed him to continue in the party,” he said.
The disgruntled leaders and workers are unhappy with Devegowda for revolting against the party leadership earlier and dissociating with party workers for the last two years. They said that during this time he was in touch with Congress and BJP, seeking Assembly tickets for himself and his son Harish Gowda. As he did not get any assurance from both parties, he shed crocodile tears in front of party supremo HD Deve Gowda and returned to the party, they alleged.
Mavinahalli Siddegowda said that they made a mistake by working against former chief minister Siddaramaiah during the 2018 elections. “We have decided to quit the party in opposition to the party top brass’ decision to continue with Devegowda in the party,” he said.
Responding to a section of JD(S) leaders rebelling against him, GT Devegowda said leaders who are not happy with the party brass’ decisions can quit. “I have not told anybody to leave the party. It is left to them,” he said.
