Former minister B N Bachche Gowda on Thursday joined the Bharatiya Janata Party along with many of his supporters in the presence of senior BJP leaders.
The four-time MLA from Hoskote lashed out at his former party - the JD(S) - and accused its leaders of betraying him. He said there was a BJP wave and the party would soon come to power.
The induction took place at former chief minister B S Yeddyurappa’s residence on Race Course Road. Gowda arrived with his supporters shouting slogans, showering flower petals accompanied by a band.
BJP National Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu and State BJP President D V Sadanada Gowda welcomed him into the party.
Don’t postpone
Naidu said assembly elections in the state need to be held by May end and there was no reason to postpone the polls. The party was also ready for parliamentary elections, he said.
The re-entry of former chief minister S M Krishna and AICC General Secretary Rahul Gandhi’s whirlwind tour of the state later this month will have no bearing on the poll prospects of the BJP, he said.
Yeddyurappa said the party would move the Supreme Court if polls were delayed in the state and a final decision in this regard will be taken on March 19 in New Delhi.
He said the BJP will organise a “satyagraha” in front of Raj Bhavan in Bangalore on March 15 to protest against the non-implementation of the ‘Sandya Suraksa’ pension scheme. Thousands of senior citizens are expected to participate in the satyagraha, he added.