MYSURU: In the runup to the Channapatna bypoll, the BJP-JDS opposition alliance suffered a setback with former MLA LR Shivaramae Gowda announcing his resignation from BJP. Like Channapatna Congress bypoll candidate CP Yogeshwara, who jumped to the Grand Old Party from BJP, Gowda announced he too is joining Congress. Gowda said he had joined BJP to strengthen the party in Mandya district and said he had appealed to party state president BY Viyajendra not to leave the Mandya Lok Sabha seat to JDS which was ultimately won by now-Union minister HD Kumaraswamy.
He said the alliance with JDS hit BJP hard and JDS leaders are against the saffron party. Gowda revealed that Yogeshwara worked in favour of BJP Lok Sabha candidate Dr CN Manjunath in Bangalore Rural. But unfortunately the party tried to finish off Yogeshwara in Channapatna to ensure the seat to the HD Deve Gowda family.
“The people of Channapatna are not fools. Yogeshwara will win the bypoll. They are making Nikhil a sacrificial goat here,” he added. He blamed Vijayendra, former CM BS Yediyurappa and factionalism within BJP for Yogeshwara to quit BJP.
He said Kumaraswamy was lucky to become CM twice.
When Kumaraswamy’s ship was about to sink, the people of Mandya came to his rescue and elected him to the Lok Sabha. Instead of going around the globe and bringing investments to Mandya and the state, Kumaraswamy is running around in Bengaluru and Mandya, raising the MUDA issue and targeting DK Shivakumar, he criticised.