CM Ibrahim held a meeting with "like-minded" people and party workers, and decided to urge HD Deve Gowda not to endorse the alliance with the NDA.
JD(S) state president CM Ibrahim has defied with the decision made by party supremo and former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda to form an alliance with the BJP in Bengaluru on Monday. (supplied)
Amidst growing political turmoil within the JD(S) in Karnataka, the party’s state president CM Ibrahim on Monday, 16 October, publicly opposed the decision by the regional outfit’s supremo and former prime minister HD Deve Gowda to form an alliance with the BJP for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
After the JD(S) announced its alliance with the BJP-led NDA, Ibrahim was upset at Deve Gowda and former Karnataka chief minister HD Kumaraswamy for not consulting him even though he was the party’s state president.
He chaired a meeting with “like-minded” people and party workers in Bengaluru on Monday, 16 October. Announcing the outcome of the meeting, Ibrahim asserted that the JD(S) would not align with the ruling NDA but instead support the opposition INDIA bloc to counter the BJP-led coalition.
The rift hints at a potential split within the party, with Ibrahim claiming his faction to be the “original JD(S)” for its commitment to secular principles.
JD(S) second-in-command Kumaraswamy on 22 September agreed to be part of the NDA after meeting Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP national president JP Nadda in New Delhi.
According to party sources, several JD(S) MLAs also differ with Deve Gowda and Kumaraswamy’s decision.
Ibrahim urged Deve Gowda not to endorse the alliance with the BJP, citing defections in neighbouring states and emphasising the continued loyalty of the Karnataka faction.
Ibrahim disclosed plans to form a core committee to convey the decision to Deve Gowda and reiterated that, as the state president, he held the authority to decide the party’s direction in Karnataka.
The situation raises questions about the party’s unity and the potential ramifications for its political standing in the state.
Former PM @H_D_Devegowda‘s decision to ally with @BJP4India-led NDA has split @JanataDal_S in Karnataka with the State President claiming “his faction” won’t support the alliance. https://t.co/O5VUIzLPZm
— Anusha Ravi Sood (@anusharavi10) October 16, 2023
Ibrahim told the media that the meeting adopted two resolutions. “Our primary resolution is that JD(S) will not align with the NDA. The second decision is to urge Deve Gowda not to endorse the alliance,” he said after the meeting.
Ibrahim, a former Union minister, also pointed at leaders in Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra leaving the party after the JD(S)’s pact with the BJP.
He disclosed plans to establish a core committee to communicate the meeting’s decisions to Deve Gowda.
“In Karnataka, we still have affection for you (Deve Gowda). You are a father figure. We will tell him that we should not have any relation with the BJP,” Ibrahim said.
He also recalled the role Janata Dal leaders with secular credentials had played in making Deve Gowda the prime minister.
Hinting at a split within the JD(S), Ibrahim reiterated that he was representing the “original JD(S)” since his faction is secular.
To a question on his future course of action if Gowda and his son Kumaraswamy did not agree with his decision, Ibrahim said, “I am the state president. I have to decide about my party in the state, which I will make. Already we have decided that we will not go with the BJP. What else is there more than this?”
“If Deve Gowda and Kumaraswamy have decided to go with the BJP then let them go. We are asking them not to go. If they go then we cannot bind them,” he added.
Regarding (JD-S) MLAs, he said: “Please wait and see who, how many and where these MLAs will make a decision. We will intimate you when the time comes.”
He claimed that many MLAs were in touch with him but refrained from disclosing their names.
“It will create pressure If I disclose their names. I will also hold one-on-one meetings with the MLAs. To defeat the BJP-led NDA, we have decided to support the INDIA bloc in the Lok Sabha elections,” Ibrahim said.
It may also be noted that Several JD(S) leaders — predominantly from the minority community — quit the regional party en masse after Kumaraswamy announced the party’s ties with the BJP.
Responding to Ibrahim’s announcement, Kumaraswamy adopted a measured stance, acknowledging the former’s freedom in decision-making.
“The state party chief is very independent and we will wait for his decision,” he said at Nanjangud in Mysuru on Monday.
“There is one decision taken by the party workers and all leaders. He (Ibrahim) deliberated with his supporters in the meeting convened by him. He is completely free to make his decision,” Kumaraswamy added.
It may be noted that ever since Kumaraswamy announced the alliance with the BJP, Ibrahim has neither met nor spoken with him on the matter. The two tall leaders of the party have been maintaining a distance for some time now.
Several JD(S) MLAs including Devadurga MLA Karemma G Nayak and Gurmitkal MLA Sharangouda Kandkur have opposed the party’s high command decision to tie up with the BJP for the Lok Sabha elections.
Though several JD(S) MLAs have publicly opposed the alliance with the BJP, all of them stayed away from Ibrahim’s meeting.
“Ibrahim had invited all MLAs to the meeting. Fearing the wrath of Deve Gowda and Kumaraswamy, they stayed away from the state president’s meeting,” a party source said.
“I am firm on the decision that I will oppose alliance with BJP in my constituency. It is only me and the people of my constituency who know the trouble we had faced from BJP’s former minister Shivanagouda Nayak in the run-up to the assembly elections.” Devadurga MLA Karemma G Nayak told South First.
“I will not support the BJP in my segment. However, I will extend my full support to Deve Gowda and Kumaraswamy on whatever decisions they take for the party’s welfare,” she added.
“It is because of Deve Gowda’s works in my constituency that I have become an MLA. Even our state president CM Ibrahim played a key role in ensuring my victory by consolidating minority votes in my favour. I will not comment against Ibrahim. I am loyal to Deve Gowda,” she reiterated.
Another MLA, Sharangouda Kandkur, too, skipped Ibrahim’s meeting. “I was stuck with some work in the constituency. Hence, I could not take part in the meeting,” he told South First.
Incidentally, several party workers were also miffed with Deve Gowda and Kumaraswamy for joining hands with the BJP.
“The JD(S) does not belong to one family. They should have taken everyone, including the state president, into confidence before making such a big decision.” JD(S) spokesperson Rangothri Kumar told South First.
“Deve Gowda, being the national president, invited party workers to his residence in Bidadi. Shockingly, he did not invite state president Ibrahim. This kind of attitude is unacceptable,” Kumar fumed.
“We have not handed over the entire party and its affairs to the Deve Gowda family. It is not the family’s property. Thousands of workers have toiled hard to build this party from scratch,” he further said.
“If the Deve Gowda family continues to make major decisions without consulting party leaders and workers, let them quit the JD(S) and join the BJP(S). Why are these two spoiling the party’s secular identity to protect their family interests,” the JD(S) spokesperson questioned.
Urging Kumaraswamy to quit the JD(S), he said: “Everyone says Kumaraswamy is a hit-and-run case. It is true. He does not have a stable mind and control over his tongue. He makes decisions as per his whims and fancies. One day supports the Congress and the next time, the BJP,” he said.
“Several MLAs are unhappy with Kumaraswamy’s decision to join hands with the BJP. They are afraid to express their sincere opinion on the alliance. The party workers are also miffed with Kumaraswamy as he always sidelines grassroots-level workers. We are not the bonded labourers of the Deve Gowda family,” Kumar declared.
(With PTI inputs)
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