Former union minister Dhananjaya Kumar, who officially joined the JD(S) here on Sunday, said the local leaders of the party want him to contest the Lok Sabha elections from Udupi-Chikmagalur constituency.
Dhananjaya claimed that he was one of the leaders who built the BJP in the State, but the party sidelined him.
“I was elected to Parliament four times and I was the first BJP MP from Mangalore. I provided a strong foundation for the BJP in Udupi and Mangalore. My image is clean. I was sidelined in the party for no reason. This forced me to join the JD(S),” he said.
He said JD(S) is the only party which has fought for the cause of farmers and the poor.
If the party comes to power it will address burning problems in the district like Kalsa Inam land eviction and problems faced by areca and coffee growers, he added.