BENGALURU: After going with the Congress party in 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the Janata Dal Secular (JDS) will now be joining hands with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in 2024 Lok Sabha polls in Karnataka and as per the seat sharing agreement between the two parties, four seats will be left for JDS and 24 seats will be contested by BJP nominees.
JDS supremo and former Prime Minister H.D. Devegowda met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Minister for Home Amit Shah in New Delhi to finalise the seat sharing and the confirmation on the JDS-BJP alliance came from BJP leader and former Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa on Friday told reporters that Devegowda met Narendra Modi and Amit Shah and it has been finalized to give four seats for the JDS in Lok Sabha polls.
Yediyurappa said “Happy about the seat sharing with JDS and welcome it” and stated that the alliance will help win in about 26 Lok Sabha seats. He termed that alliance with JDS has given strength for the BJP to fight the parliamentary election and said to meet JDS leaders-H.D. Devegowda and H.D. Kumaraswamy soon.
But, he did not disclose the seats that will be left for the JDS nominees. However, it is speculated that JDS would contest Mandya, Hassan, Mysuru and Bengaluru rural seats. It is also said that JDS is eyeing Chikkaballapura Lok Sabha seat.
During the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, JDS and Congress party ran a coalition government and the alliance continued in the Lok Sabha elections. In the election, JDS contested 8 parliamentary seats with the support of the Congress party prominently Hassan, Mandya and Tumakuru seats and JDS won Hassan Lok Sabha, losing other seats it contested with the support of Congress party.
Presently, JDS Lok Sabha of Hassan Prajwal Revanna, grandson of former PM Devegowda has been disqualified by the High Court of Karnataka over corrupt practices.
Prominent losers in 2019 elections from JDS included former Prime Minister H.D. Devegowda who had contested from Tumakuru seat and lost it by a slender margin of votes against BJP nominee G.S. Basavaraju. The Mandya parliamentary seat contested by Nikhil Kumaraswamy, grandson of H.D. Devegowda, was also defeated by independent nominee Sumalatha Ambareesh.
Reacting to the alliance between JDS and BJP in Karnataka, president of Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee and Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar said “Let them unite” and wished the alliance “all the best.” JDS MLA H.D. Revanna said he will abide by the decision of Devegowda, former Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy and State unit president C.M. Ibrahim.
Even during the Karnataka Assembly elections held in May this year, it was speculated that JDS and BJP would forge an alliance but then the alliance did not materialize. In the assembly results, Congress won in 135 seats, BJP in 66, JDS in 19 and four independents won in the 224 seats.
A couple of months back, former Chief Minister and JDS leader H.D. Kumaraswamy held a joint press conference with BJP leader and previous Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai and both the parties staged a protest against the ruling Congress party indicating a possible alliance between the two parties to fight the Lok Sabha polls in 2024.
