Poaching threat: JD(S) to make candidates take oath

Wary that its lawmakers will get poached, a cautious JD(S) has decided to administer a divine oath to all its candidates and make them swear that they will not desert the party after getting elected in the 2023 assembly polls.

The JD(S) is ready with a list of candidates for 100 constituencies. The party was slated to release it at the Pancha Rathna Yatra at Mulbagal in Kolar on Tuesday. However, the campaign stands postponed by a week due to unexpected rains.

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JD(S) legislature party leader H D Kumaraswamy said the oath will be mandatory for candidates before the elections. "We are witnessing what is happening in the neighboring states and how BJP is poaching MLAs. To avoid such issues after the elections, we will be asking all our candidates to take an oath before going into the elections. They should promise the party that they will not renege," the former chief minister said.

The party's candidates will be asked to swear in front of JD(S) patriarch H D Deve Gowda.

According to sources, candidates who have been shortlisted were surprised with the party's plan to make them take an oath. After all, they were to be announced as the party's candidates for the assembly polls earlier in the day, if it was not for the rains. "The candidates will be asked to swear on whatever god they trust or in the name of those they love the most," a source said.