Labour Minister Iqbal Ansari is clear that if the transfer of power takes place and Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy hands over the baton to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), he would “not participate in the government.”

Speaking on the sidelines of the sixth all India conference of state Urdu academies on Wednesday, Ansari reiterated his stand on the issue. “This is my personal view and not the party’s view” he said.

Giving reasons for his decision, he alleged that if the BJP was handed over the reins of the government, they would “repeat Mangalore riots in the state.”

“There will be communal tension in the state, and I being a representative of the minority, owe some responsibility to them (the minorities) and need to protect them,” he said.