JD(S) patriarch and former prime minister H.D. Deve Gowda, on Monday, said his party joined hands with the BJP for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections after the Congress and its INDIA partners chose to keep a distance from the JD(S).
Speaking in Hassan, Gowda said, "When H.D. Kumaraswamy was sworn in as the chief minister, many of the opposition leaders (who are now part of INDIA alliance) had attended the event. But the (INDIA) alliance parties chose to keep the JD(S) out when they met in Bengaluru recently. Was it justified?"
He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah had invited the JD(S) to form an alliance when the opposition alliance kept a distance from the regional party.
Slamming the Congress for accusing the JD(S) of having lost its secular credentials, Gowda said, "The Congress pushed us out of the opposition alliance. They toppled the Kumaraswamy (coalition) government in Karnataka. In fact, they forced us to sever the ties with them. When they pushed us out, Modi and Shah welcomed us."
The Vokkaliga icon claimed that the party chose to go with the BJP for its own political survival. "The Congress leaders have always spoken lightly of the JD(S). Modi has respect for me and has invited us to join hands with the BJP. We took the decision after much thought. In the coming days, we will undoubtedly support the BJP to fight the Congress. I need to save our party."
He said the BJP high command would take a decision on seat-sharing after consulting the state BJP and JD(S) leaders. “The alliance hopes to win all 28 Lok Sabha seats in the state."
Responding to the poll outcome in Telangana, the senior politician said the Congress had won in the neighbouring state utilising the funds supplied by its Karnataka leaders.
Earlier, Gowda posted a congratulatory note to the BJP for winning the three states in the Hindi heartland. He wrote, "My party congratulates the top leadership of @BJP4India especially Prime Minister @narendramodi, for their splendid performance in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh".