BJP inducts 2 former MPs, others into party fold; Kateel taunts Congress

BENGALURU: With KPCC president D K Shivakumar extending an invitation to the rebels who had quit the Congress to join the BJP, the ruling party has hit back saying those who crossed over have been made ministers.

The party inducted several people, including former Congress MP Muddahanume Gowda, into its fold on Thursday.

Speaking at a ceremony to induct several leaders into the BJP fold at the party office here on Thursday, state president Nalin Kumar Kateel said all those who have joined the party have easily blended in and become leaders. “The Congress did injustice to former Tumakuru MP Muddahanume Gowda. He has realised the party’s true colours now”, Kateel said.

Muddahanume Gowda, along with actor and former MP Shashikumar, retired IAS officer B H Anil Kumar, former Special Officer to late Congress leader Shiela Dixit, Ramesh Muniyappa, Congress Seva Dal state vice-president Hanumanthrao Jawali, former Coir Board president G Venkatachalaiah, Samajwadi Party general secretary H Y Ravikumar, Raitha Sangha leader Sanjeev Reddy, Dalit leader Venkatesh Murthy joined the BJP in the presence of Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Thursday.

Among those who joined the BJP included retired IAS officer B H Anil Kumar.

Speaking after their induction into the party, Kateel said, “The Congress will have to shut its doors in another 15-20 days, or before the election, as more leaders are knocking on our doors. This is not just a special occasion, but an indication of the changing political scene.Wherever Rahul Gandhi has gone on his Bharat Jodo Yatra, the Congress has lost. The BJP winning six out of seven seats in Kollegal and doing well in Vijayapura are indicators of this”, he remarked.

Expressing confidence that the BJP will come back to power next year, he claimed that the Congress will be an empty house by then. “The people of the country have welcomed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s governance and winds of change are sweeping across the country. Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai has delivered justice to the SC and ST communities and also to pourakarmikas, which has changed the political scene in the state”, he remarked.

Further, Kateel said, “The traditional vote banks of the Congress, and even party workers, are abandoning it now. The BJP will win 150 seats in the next election. About 4-5 lakh people had gathered for the OBC convention held in Kalaburagi. Minister Ashwath Narayan, who is a doctor, should prescribe new spectacles to Congress leader Siddaramaiah who said only 40-50,000 people had gathered”, he taunted.

The Congress in the state is divided into factions backing Siddaramaiah and D K Shivakumar. Karnataka will become Congress mukt after the next election, he said.