I will not contest any more elections: Deve Gowda

 Former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda today said in Lok Sabha that he will not contest any election in future.

"...I am not going to contest any more elections," the 82-year old leader said during a debate on the motion of thanks to President's address.

Virtually calling it a day in politics, the veteran Janata Dal (Secular) leader said there were always ups and downs in politics.

"Out of 15 elections that I contested, I lost only two," he said, adding that he had spent most of his time in Karnataka and had shifted to Delhi only later.

Gowda further said that BJP had got a clear majority in the House and hence should implement the development agenda. He urged the Narendra Modi government to also implement the initiatives taken by him when he was the Prime Minister.

After the Congress party lost 1996 general elections, Gowda, then the Chief Minister of Karnataka, was unexpectedly chosen to head the government of the United Front (a coalition of non-Congress and non-BJP regional parties), with outside support of the Congress.

Gowda became the 12th Prime Minister in June 1996. His government could not last full term as the Congress party withdrew its support.

Later, Gowda founded the JD(S) and was elected to the Lok Sabha for the sixth term in 2014 from Hassan constituency.