Before assembly elections, a Lingayat leader leaves the BJP to join the Congress.
Bengaluru Before the assembly elections in Karnataka, Bharatiya Janata Party leader HD Thammaiah and 300 of his supporters joined the Congress on Sunday. Thammaiah was a close friend of the party’s national general secretary, CT Ravi.
Party sources say that Thammaiah, a well-known Lingayat leader from the Chikkamagaluru constituency, was angry that he wasn’t given a ticket to run for the assembly elections.
Soon after leaving the BJP, Thammaiah was welcomed into the Congress in Bengaluru by DK Shivakumar, who is the president of the Karnataka PCC. Thammaiah, who is also the president of the Chikkamagaluru Town Municipality, said that he is joining the Congress without any conditions.
“I’m glad to see that so many of my fans came with me. I’m going to Congress with no strings attached. I’m not new to the Congress party. I have also been in Congress before. Later, the ticket will be given based on what people think. This is the first time that Congress gives out tickets based on what people in the whole state say. “A decision will be made based on that, and I will work based on that,” he said.
Thammaiah, who reportedly wanted to run for the Chikkamagaluru assembly seat, has been a member of the BJP for more than 17 years and has worked in many different roles. He is said to be close to the sons of the former chief minister, B Y Vijayendra and B Y Raghavendra. On Sunday, he said that he is leaving his job as convener of the district unit and giving up his primary membership in the BJP.
Shivakumar told him he was glad to have him join the party and that Chikkamagaluru is one of the districts that is changing the state’s political direction. He also said that many leaders of the BJP are ready to join the Congress in the next few days.
“Soon, there will be more people in the Congress. I talk to a lot of current MLAs, but I don’t want to give out their names and hurt their careers. This shows how people feel now that elections are coming up. Amit Shah, who is the Union Home Minister and a national leader of the BJP, is going to the level of constituencies to strengthen the party’s base. Not that I think this is wrong. “But this shows where their weakness is,” Shivakumar said.
“The people who are joining Congress are not big leaders. Instead, they are people who work in booths, and it’s because of them that we have a national party. In the next few days, a lot of people will join us… Since Thammaiah joined Congress, Chikkamagaluru is having a good time. So far, there have been elections about Datta Peetha, Bababudangiri, and how people feel about these things. But now it will be based on what’s happening on the ground,” said Shivakumar.
Shivakumar said a message about the changing political climate in the state should be sent to the BJP at the centre. He asked Thammaiah’s supporters and loyalists who joined Congress to strengthen the party. “You have all joined Congress and backed Thammaiah. I want everyone to work to make the party stronger, and not just at the booth level, but also in a way that sends a message to the BJP in Delhi. I wish you all a warm welcome to Congress.”
CT Ravi said in response to Thammaiah’s resignation, “This is not the first time someone has tried to get rid of BJP. In every case, people from every community have stood with the BJP. We won the last time by a difference of 26,314 votes. This time, workers for the party have decided to win by a margin of 1 lakh.
“Those with strong beliefs will stick with the BJP. Those who think about their own gains and losses will leave. I don’t have anything to say about Thammaiah leaving. The BJP has support from all groups, including the Lingayats. They have always helped us, and they will continue to do so,” the BJP’s national general secretary said.
Even though the Congress high command said that no one should be shown as the CM candidate before the elections, MLA Byrathi Suresh called Siddaramaiah the next CM on Saturday.
Suresh said at the unveiling of the Sangolli Rayanna statue in Yelburga, “Siddaramaiah has worked to make the country better. He is a very honest politician and should be the next chief minister to get all development projects back on track.
Suresh’s comment started a fight with the other people on stage, who asked him not to talk only about Siddaramaiah. The police had to step in to calm things down. “No one can keep me from saying nice things about Siddaramaiah. Few people can argue with that, but I’ll keep praising him,” Suresh said.
Shivakumar and Siddaramaiah are two Congress people who want to be chief minister.
