Advertisement
In an interview to PTI on Tuesday, the former prime minister said JD(S) would contest the bypolls to fill 15 vacancies in Karnataka Assembly alone and “certainly maintain equidistance” from the Congress and the BJP.
The veteran politician also said he was in fact reluctant to have a tie-up with Congress after the May 2018 Karnataka election.
“It was the Congress which came to me after the election and persuaded us for formation of Congress-JD(S) government. Initially I did not agree but after prolonged persuasion by the Congress I accepted (the alliance),” Deve Gowda said.
Related Articles
Advertisement
“There is no question of JD(S) having any electoral tie-up with any of these two parties Congress or the BJP and we will go alone,” Deve Gowda reiterated.
Asked if he was softening towards the BJP in view of exchange of tweets of appreciation with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he replied in the negative: “Nothing like that.”
The bypolls are necessitated due to the disqualification of 17 legislators of Congress and JD(S) under the anti-defection law by the then Speaker of Karnataka Assembly.
The MLAs later filed a petition in the Supreme Court on which the order is reserved.
The EC has announced the poll schedule for only 15 of the 17 constituencies. It could not do so for Maski and Rajarajeshwari Nagar segments as petitions are pending in the Karnataka High Court relating to 2018 assembly poll.
Winning a majority of seats in the bypolls is necessary for the ruling BJP led by B S Yeddyurappa to stay in power.
The constituencies polling on December 5 are: Athani, Kagwad, Gokak, Yellapura, Hirekerur, Ranibennur, Vijaynagara, Chickballapura, K R Pura, Yeshwanthpura, Mahalakshmi Layout, Shivajinagara, Hosakote, K R Pete and Hunsur.