He said he was not invited to the meeting of Opposition parties in Bengaluru as a section of the Karnataka Congress opposed such a move.
HD Deve Gowda with PM Narendra Modi. (Twitter)
Former prime minister HD Deve Gowda said on Tuesday, 25 July, that the JD(S) would fight the 2024 Lok Sabha elections independently.
In a move which seemed like keeping his options open amid the recent bonhomie between the party and the BJP, the party supremo said: “The party will decide on its action in future based on the prevailing situation.”
Deve Gowda also said he was not invited to the meeting of Opposition parties in Bengaluru earlier this month as a section of the Karnataka Congress opposed such a move, even though Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar wanted him to be there.
Gowda’s son and former Karnataka chief minister HD Kumaraswamy said last week his party would work with the BJP against the Congress government in Karnataka on various issues, fueling speculation of the two parties joining hands for next year’s parliamentary polls.
Earlier, on asking about the JD(S) extending support to the BJP in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly, the former prime minister pointed out: “Kumaraswamy had tweeted about the ruling Congress government misusing government machinery. The BJP took it up and fought in the Assembly. The BJP and the JD(S) were aligned on this issue. The BJP has the numerical strength, and it was protesting based on Kumaraswamy’s tweet.”
However, he also said: “There is no alliance or relationship between the JD(S) and the BJP. The BJP will fight its battle, and we will fight ours.”
It may be noted that in the recently concluded budget session, held from 3 to 21 July, the JD(S) announced support to the BJP after 10 MLAs of the saffron cadre were suspended for disrupting the House.
As the 2024 Lok Sabha elections draw near, the JD(S) is planning to contest only five to seven seats in Karnataka.
“Whether we (the party) win five, six, three, two or one seats, we will fight the Lok Sabha elections independently,” Deve Gowda said. “We will field candidates only in those places where we are strong after consulting with our workers.”
Gowda, however, said the party would decide its future course of action based on the prevailing situation.
In this context, he recalled how his party had given support to the Congress-led government led by the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
On condition of anonymity, a senior JD(S) leader earlier told South First: “A couple of meetings have been held by the party leadership on the Lok Sabha elections. The party is planning to contest only in five to seven seats.”
The leader added: “The party is likely to field candidates in Hassan, which is currently represented by the JD(S)’s Prajwal Revanna. It will also contest Mandya, Tumakuru, and Mysuru. The remaining three constituencies are yet to be finalised.”
He also said: “The first mark for the party is the upcoming Zilla and Taluk Panchayat elections. Decisions on the general elections are likely to be made by Deve Gowda and Kumaraswamy based on the party’s performance in the local body elections.”
In the previous Lok Sabha elections, the party had contested eight seats but managed to win only one: Hassan.
The JD(S) and the Congress fought the 2019 Lok Sabha elections together. The BJP had won 25 out of 28 seats in Karnataka then. The JD(S) and the Congress had secured one seat each, while an independent backed by the BJP had also won.
Deve Gowda, who had contested from the Tumakuru Lok Sabha segment, had also lost.
To a question on why he was not invited by the Opposition parties for its meeting in Bengaluru on 17-18 July, Gowda said a section of Congress leaders from Karnataka had opposed his presence.
“A section of the Congress here (in Karnataka) had threatened that they will not attend the event if Deve Gowda is invited. Hence, I was not called,” he said.
Deve Gowda said Nitish Kumar wanted to invite him but some local Congress leaders were not in favour.
The JD(S) put up a poor show in the elections to the 224-member Karnataka Assembly in May, bagging only 19 seats.
“The party has existed till today since 1983 and will continue to exist. Those who think that the party will end are living under an illusion. It is not possible,” Gowda said.
According to Gowda, the 19 MLAs, seven MLCs and top leaders met last week and chalked out programmes for campaigning in the districts, which will be finalised after Kumaraswamy returns from abroad.
(With PTI inputs)
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