Lok Sabha Election 2024: Former Karnataka Minister and mining baron G Janardhana Reddy today (March 25) rejoined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Reddy, who is an accused in an illegal mining case, had formed the 'Kalyana Rajya Pragati Paksha' (KRPP) before the state assembly polls last year, ending his two-decade-long association with the BJP. Today, Reddy merged his KRPP with the BJP, joining the party along with his wife Aruna Lakshmi and some family members.
He joined the saffron party in the presence of veteran leader and former Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa, state President B Y Vijayendra, and others.
Reddy had recently met Union Home Minister Amit Shah in New Delhi. However, in the February 27 Rajya Sabha polls he had extended support to the Congress candidate.
'Joined without any condition'
Describing it as a "homecoming," Reddy stated that the decision to merge KRPP with the BJP aims to "strengthen Narendra Modi's hands and help him become Prime Minister for the third time."
"Amit Shah had invited me to Delhi and told me that -- there is no question of extending outside support (KRPP supporting BJP in LS polls) and instead I should join the BJP and work for it, as I took my political birth in the party. Accepting it, I'm joining the party," he said.
He lauded Yediyurappa and acknowledged the leader's role in his political journey, expressing contentment in working alongside Yediyurappa's son, Vijayendra, within the party. "I will work as a common party worker along with other leaders under the leadership of Vijayendra. I have not come with any conditions or expectations. Whatever responsibility the party gives me, I will honestly work. BJP was always there in my blood, but due to some reasons I had gone out, but today I feel I have come back to my mother's lap. Looking at my brothers here, I don't feel like I'm coming back to the BJP office after 13 years," he added.
BJP-JDS alliance
As per the pact, BJP will contest 25 seats with the support of JDS, and JDS will contest 3 seats with the support of the BJP.
Karnataka Lok Sabha Election
The 28 seats of Karnataka will go to polls for the Lok Sabha elections in two phases on April 26 and May 7 (second and third phase).
Phase 1: Udupi Chikmagalur, Hassan, Dakshina Kannada, Chitradurga, Tumkur, Mandya, Mysore, Chamarajanagar, Bangalore Rural, Bangalore North, Bangalore Central, Bengalore South, Chikkballapur, Kolar.
Phase 2: Chikkodi, Belgaum, Bagalkot, Bijapur, Gulbarga, Raichur, Bidar, Koppal, Bellary, Haveri, Dharwad, Uttara Kannada, Davanagere, Shimoga.
The BJP is contesting in alliance with the JDS. The saffron party will contest 25 out of the 28 Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka while its ally JDS will contest on the rest. Congress is contesting alone in the state.
The BJP had swept the 2019 Lok Sabha elections in Karnataka bagging 25 seats. An idependent back by the party also won the election.
(With agencies input)
Also Read: BJP-JDS finalise seat-sharing for all 28 Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka
