Former Prime Minister and supremo of JD (S) party, Deve Gowda on Saturday promised to keep the regional party alive and will make a try to come to power in the Karnataka’s Assembly elections to be held in 2023, on its own.
Regarding the speculation of merging with BJP, Deve Gowda, while addressing the news conference said, “I was a former PM. Will I take the party to somebody else’s doorsteps? Does this make any sense? Which astrologer made this prophecy.”
He further added, “Let’s not speak so lightly about a political party. This party can’t be so easily removed. It’s not just Deve Gowda and his son, but there are other people who will keep the party afloat.”
When asked about their plan for the 2023 elections, he said the party is working to come to power independently, taking away the speculation of merger with BJP. He said, “Today, that question doesn’t arise. Let’s see what mandate the people are going to give. We’re working towards coming to power on our own.”
When broached about how BJP and JD(S) are coming close together, and have also dislodged Legislative Council chairperson K Pratapachandra Shetty, Gowda said JD(S) urged Congress to cede the post in 2018, when two parties merged together to form an alliance.
He said, “I asked Horatti to file his papers. But he was finally forced to withdraw and this hurt him. He’s a 7-time member.. With just 78 seats, the Congress made K R Ramesh Kumar as the Assembly Speaker. Would that have been possible without our support?All this drama happened because (Congress) wanted to test my secular credentials.”
Gowda iterated about how Congress also had switched sides. He said, “Wasn’t Mamata Banerjee the railway minister in the BJP government? What happened in Bihar? And, didn’t you form the government with Shiv Sena? When the Godhra incident happened, who misled the Muslims. Let them be true to their soul.”
He said, “Rahul Gandhi, a future Prime Minister, was made to say that the JD(S) was the BJP’s ‘B’ team. Who made him say this? What was the result of that? Why did you get reduced to 78 seats despite giving rice, milk and bhagyas,” inclining his anger to ex-protege of Congress. He added, “The same secular party that called us the BJP’s ‘B’ team later knocked at my door.”
Gowda poke about how JD(S) attempted to strengthen Congress. He said, “It wasn’t my son who went to anybody to become the CM. For his swearing-in, secular leaders from all over India came, including six CMs. That was a time when the Congress had lost its identity in 18 states. Who spoiled this.”
He has called for a mega meeting scheduled on January 7, 2021 at the Palace Grounds in Bengaluru. He said, “Grassroots party workers, legislators…everyone has been called. Those who’re honest will come, those who aren’t will go. This meeting will reveal the ground reality.”
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