Gowda blames chief minister for luring JD(S) leaders

JD(S) chief H D Deve Gowda on Sunday alleged that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has been
instigating his party legislators to quit the party.

Addressing reporters, he said some JD(S) legislators were planning to join the Congress. “Those who want to leave the party are free to do so. I will not stop them from doing so, nor will I bother about them. Those who think money is must to survive in politics and those who are unwilling to participate in the organisational activities, are free to go,” he said.

Speculations are rife in political circles that some of the party legislators may hop over to the ruling Congress. The JD(S) legislators feel that the party has no future.

However, none of the legislators has so far openly expressed their willingness to quit the party. It is said that Gowda is upset with some senior legislators for questioning his hold over the party.
“Some legislators are worried about their future. I have suggestions that will put an end to their concerns

“Those who are loyal to the party can stay. And those who are of the view that money is must in politics, can either join the Congress or the BJP,” Gowda said.

Blaming Siddaramaiah for creating confusion in the party, he alleged that the chief minister had been trying to lure the JD(S) legislators. In the recently-held legislature session, Siddaramaiah had asked JD(S) MLC Sandesh Nagaraj to quit the party and citied his example of having become the chief minister after quitting the party.

He said he has convened a meeting of loyal party workers on Monday at the Palace Grounds in Bangalore to discuss strengthening the party.

The JD(S) leader, however, chose not to reply to a question as to what action the party will take against those who keep off the meeting.

Asked about the cash-for-vote controversy involving his son H D Kumaraswamy, Gowda said, “Leaders like Y S V Datta, Abdul Azim, H C Neeravari and B R Gurudev were made MLCs by Kumaraswamy. Has he taken money from all of them,” he questioned and added that he knew how the national parties nominated members to the Upper House of the legislature.

He said he will camp in his parliamentary constituency Hassan for three days a week and listen to people’s grievances. He also said he will tour the State in order to strengthen the party.

Gowda said his party will maintain equal-distance from both the Congress and the BJP in the byelection to the three Assembly constituencies, but the local party leaders have been given the freedom to support any of these national parties.