Venkatesh Prasad, elder brother of Congress MLA B. Nagendra, formally joined the BJP here on Tuesday.
Contrary to expectations, the programme was a tame affair with no senior party leader, including B. Sriramulu, B.S. Yeddyurappa, and G. Somashekar Reddy, in attendance.
Mr. Prasad, after not being given Congress ticket in the recent byelection to Ballari Lok Sabha constituency, was keen on seeking BJP ticket and had also started lobbying for it. Even his brother Mr. Nagendra, a close associate of the Ballari Reddy brothers who joined the Congress just prior to the Assembly elections last year and successfully contested on party ticket, was also reportedly meeting senior leaders of the saffron party.
Later in the day, Mr. Sriramulu said, “With Mr. Prasad joining the party, his younger brother and MLA B. Nagendra will also be joining [us]. Maybe due to technical reasons, that has been delayed.” He also said a list of four or five candidate names has been forwarded to the party high command for the Ballari seat.
