BJP MLA meets Siddaramaiah, Adds to Speculation

BENGALURU: Amid speculation that some of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislators would join the Congress in Karnataka, BJP MLA and former minister S.T. Somashekar met Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in Bengaluru on Sunday evening which lasted for more than half an hour.

However, the BJP MLA stated that he had met the Chief Minister to discuss various developments related to his assembly constituency - Yeshwanthpur in Bengaluru city.

But, speculation is rife that Somashekar would return to the Congress which he had left in 2019 to join the BJP. In the BJP government, Somashekar served as the minister for cooperation and held the district incharge of Mysuru.

In the 2023 assembly election, he was re-elected from Yeshwanthpur assembly seat and a couple of days back Somashekar alleged that some of the BJP leaders of his constituency conspired to defeat him in the election.

Somashekar also skipped a meeting convened by BJP leader and former CM B.S. Yediyurappa, a couple of days back and to pacify Somashekar, BJP on Sunday expelled its leaders – Dhananjaya and Maregowda - on charges of anti-party activities during the assembly election. They have been expelled for six years from the party.

At a public function held in Yeshwanthpur constituency a couple of days back, Somashekar lauded Deputy Chief Minister and president of Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) D.K. Shivakumar and termed him as his ‘mentor.’

It is said that despite the BJP trying to keep Somashekar in good humour, the BJP MLA is speculated to ditch the BJP and return back to the Congress.

BJP leader and former minister C.T. Ravi stated that his party is also well aware of tactics to counter the operations of the Congress and exuded confidence that none of his party MLAs would switch loyalties.