MYSURU: Former Union Minister CM Ibrahim met JDS MLA GT Devegowda at the latter’s residence in Mysuru on Monday.
Ibrahim’s visit comes just days after Devegowda expressed displeasure against the JDS leadership for not inviting him to campaign for Nikhil Kumaraswamy ahead of the recent Channapatna by-poll.
Ibrahim visited Devegowda to wish him on his birthday and held talks for more than an hour.
Later, speaking to the media, Ibrahim expressed his ambition to launch a new political party or a third front in Karnataka. “GT Devegowda would have been a minister if he had joined the Congress ahead of last year’s Assembly elections in the state. To strengthen JDS, I, as the party’s state president, forced him to remain in the party. But now, the JDS high command is trying to destroy Devegowda politically.
I have discussed all these issues with him,” Ibrahim said, adding that he will embark on a statewide tour soon to meet several political leaders. “I will meet Devegowda again."
"The original JDS belongs to us. We are ready to build JDS again if former PM HD Deve Gowda ends the alliance with BJP. The decision to launch a separate political party or the formation of a third front in the state or strengthening JDS will be taken in the coming days,” Ibrahim added.
Accusing Union Minister HD Kumaraswamy of ignoring Devegowda, Ibrahim said that there are at least 13 MLAs in JDS who are unhappy with the party leadership.
“I have taken up the task of uniting all the disgruntled JDS MLAs and discussing whether to remain in JDS or form a third front. Kumaraswamy should realise his mistakes and stop transforming JDS into a family company. When I was with Kumaraswamy, he had won the Channapatna seat with a lead of 20,000 votes by spending Rs 4 crore. Now, by entering into an alliance with BJP, he spent Rs 150 crore and his son lost by more than 25,000 votes,” he added.
Speaking to the media, Devegowda said that Ibrahim is enthusiastic about launching a separate regional party.
“A new political party cannot be built on the support of MLAs alone... it needs workers. I have never called any JDS leader to express my disappointment. The pain that I had suffered in the party is not new. I will quit politics if HD Deve Gowda says that they had invited me to campaign in the bypolls,” he said.