NEW DELHI:
Former Karnataka Chief Minister Jagdish Shettar, who had joined the Congress ahead of the 2023 legislative elections last year, returned to the BJP on Thursday. “Today is a day of great happiness for us as Jagadish Shettar is making a return to BJP. We all welcome him,” said Anil Baluni, a Rajya Sabha member and the National chief spokesperson of the BJP.
Shettar rejoined the BJP in the national capital in the presence of former Karnakata chief minister BS Yediyurappa, Union Minister Bhupender Singh Yadav, Karnataka BJP president Vijayendra Yediyurappa, Union Minister of State Rajeev Chandrasekhar. After getting inducted into the BJP once again, Shettar said, “The party gave me a lot of responsibilities in the past. Due to some issues, I went to the Congress party. In the last eight to nine months, there were a lot of discussions, also BJP workers asked me to come back to the BJP.”
“Yediyurappa ji and Vijayendra ji also wanted me to come back to the BJP. I am rejoining the party with the belief that Narendra Modi ji has to become the PM again,” he said. Earlier in the day, Shettar met with Union Home Minister Amit Shah at BJP headquarters in Delhi.
There had been ongoing rumours about Shettar’s return to the BJP for the past few days, to which the Congress leaders in Karnataka had responded by saying that the BJP’s leadership crisis in the state prompted the party to head towards Shettar. Meanwhile, speaking in Mysore today, Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah said that he was not aware of Shettar joining the BJP.
Former Karnataka CM Shri @JagadishShettar joins BJP at party headquarters in New Delhi. #JoinBJP https://t.co/inNAusZgeC
— BJP (@BJP4India) January 25, 2024
“I don’t know, did Shettar say it?. He had joined the Congress sttaing that the BJP had disrespected him and didn’t give ticket. We gave him him ticket in assembly election, we made him MLC after losing election, so he wasn’t disrespected in the Congress nor injustice done, we respected him I didn’t know this development. Once, he said to me that he was disrespected and he will not join BJP again,” Siddaramaiah said. Shettar had quit BJP and joined Congress in April 2023, ahead of the Karnataka assembly elections.
The former Karnataka CM’s induction into Congress had taken place in the presence of Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, Karnataka state Congress president DK Shivakumar and Leader of Opposition in the state assembly Siddaramaiah. During that time Kharge said, “Though he was in RSS and Jana Sangha, he’s a non-controversial person. We have worked together.”
Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai had mentioned that BJP president JP Nadda and Union Home Minister Amit Shah had promised Shettar a big post in Delhi. “Jagadish Shettar has been a senior and an important leader in this region. JP Nadda and Union Home Minister had promised a big post in Delhi to Shettar. Everything would have been fine if the former CM had continued,” Bommai told media persons in Hubballi.
Shettar, a six-time MLA from the constituency, was reportedly advised by the party to stand down and not seek a fresh term as MLA from the Hubli-Dharwad Central segment, following which his followers expressed their anguish against the party’s high command. After announcing his resignation from BJP, Jagadish Shettar also mentioned that there was a conspiracy against him, which is why he was denied a ticket. “There is a conspiracy against me, will tell everything after resigning,” Shettar told ANI.
