HUBBALLI: “Not just MLAs ST Somashekhar and Shivaram Hebbar, some more from BJP are likely to join Congress soon. Whoever wants to join, accepting the party’s principles will be taken in,” said KPCC president D K Shivakumar here on Wednesday.
Reacting to remarks of former chief minister Jagadish Shettar, who recently joined BJP after quitting Congress, that many Congress leaders are joining the saffron party, Shivakumar said Shettar would regret returning to BJP. He will talk about it within a month, he predicted.
On the Congress candidates’ list for the Lok Sabha elections, he said the party has already listed the probable candidates. The final decision will be taken by the party’s Central Election Committee, which will meet on Thursday. The list will be announced soon, he added.
Shivakumar, who also holds the water resources portfolio, lashed out at BJP leaders, especially Union Minister Pralhad Joshi, for the delay in implementing the Mahadayi diversion project, linking Kalasa and Banduri streams to Malaprabha river. “BJP leaders celebrated like they had got water to the state when the Union government accepted the detailed project report. On the contrary, the project is caught in procedural wrangles and Joshi has not uttered a single word to resolve the issues. If he (Joshi) holds a meeting with the officials of concerned central agencies to clear the hurdles, it could bring him honour,” he said.
Reacting to the opposition’s demand for his resignation over Rajya Sabha member Sayed Naseer Hussain’s supporters raising pro-Pakistan slogans at Vidhana Soudha, he shot back, asking, “Why the then BJP government did not arrest their party worker for raising Pakistan zindabad slogan in Mandya.” He also questioned BJP leaders’ commitment to national unity.