Former Minister and BJP MP representing Chamarajanagar Lok Sabha constituency V. Srinivas Prasad on Tuesday said the BJP does not need the support of JD(S) in the ensuing elections to the Legislative Council.
Fielding reporters’ queries during a press conference here, Mr Prasad said the BJP had proved its worth by becoming the only party other than Congress to come to power at the Centre on its own. The support of JD(S) is not inevitable.
He referred to the alliance JD(S) had with the Congress during the Lok Sabha elections of 2019. “How many seats did you win? You could win only one seat each”, he remarked.
When his attention was drawn to former Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa’s request for JD(S) support in constituencies where the latter had not fielded its candidates, Mr. Prasad said the BJP high command will take a decision on the proposed understanding between the two parties.
Also, Mr. Prasad said there was no need for former Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy to repeatedly criticise the RSS. “I can understand him criticising the BJP, which is a political party. But, what is the need to criticise the RSS, which is a cultural organisation”, he said, asking Mr Kumaraswamy to stop trying to achieve political growth by making such statements.
When his attention was drawn to the growing political proximity between former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and JD(S) MLA representing Chamundeshwari Assembly constituency G.T. Deve Gowda, Mr. Prasad said he finds the political development ‘comical’. For, it was Mr Siddaramaiah, who swore against Mr. Gowda before the last Assembly elections, but lost to him miserably. He said he finds it “funny” that the two leaders were now joining hands.
He said Mr. Siddaramaiah had displayed “political weakness” by contesting from two constituencies as a Chief Minister. There was no need for him to abandon the constituencies from where he had been elected five to six times and enter the fray from Badami. Mr Prasad also referred to the statements by former Badami MLA and Congress leader B. Chimmankatti, who had asked Mr. Siddaramaiah to return to either Varuna or Chamundeshwari for the next elections.
‘Improved strength’
With regard to the party candidate Raghu Kautilya’s chances in Mysuru-Chamarajanagar Lok Sabha seat, Mr. Prasad said the Congress and JD (S) were traditional rivals in the region, but the BJP’s strength has improved since the last elections when the party nominee had lost narrowly. He expressed confidence that the party will win the election from the dual-member seat.
