K’taka JD(S) President declares support for Cong, says party not property of Deve Gowda’s family
Bengaluru: In a big setback to the BJP and JD(S) alliance in Karnataka, JD(S) State President C.M. Ibrahim has declared support for the ruling Congress party. He also claimed that the JD(S) party is not the property of former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda’s family.
Speaking at the Chitana-Manthana programme called to discuss future steps in the backdrop of the decision taken on the JD(S) and BJP alliance without keeping him in the loop, Ibrahim proclaimed that he is the president of the party. “I can’t be sacked. The JD(S) is not a family’s property,” he maintained.
“I request Deve Gowda not to give the wrong message. You went on to become the Prime Minister because of secular ideology,” he stated.
The JD(S) party has a secular ideology. BJP’s ideology is different. The NDA should be defeated in the Lok Sabha elections. “We will support the Congress. The original JD(S) party belongs to us. You can’t snatch the post of party president from me. How did former chief minister H.D. Kumaraswamy win from the Channapatna seat? After Kumaraswamy became MLA, he was called by Union Home Minister Amit Shah,” he charged.
Ibrahim further stated, “If Muslims had not voted for him, he was supposed to sit at home as he would have been defeated. I won’t target Kumaraswamy personally. There is still time. We are not going with the BJP. We will form a core committee. I will contact all JD(S) MLAs. The party does not belong to a family. I will discuss the matter with all the representatives. The opinion of all party workers is important.”
He maintained that there is no personal enmity for him against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Amit Shah. The ideologies are different and he is opposed to this background. “I will take a call on how to go about in future. You have been betrayed by your own people. We are in our house. What will happen in future will be shown on the silver screen. I am not scared and I will also not issue threats,” Ibrahim stated. He was indirectly referring to the shifting of Vokkaliga community votes to Congress. Deve Gowda’s family hails from the Vokkaliga community.
“During my tenure as the party president in 1995, I ensured the win of 16 JD(S) MPs and Deve Gowda went on to become the PM. Today a big message has to go to the nation. Dr. B.R. Ambedkar wrote the Constitution for India. The same message was given by Basaveshwara (Basava) 800 years ago. Now, photos are taken with Amit Shah and an announcement on the alliance is made,” Ibrahim maintained.
“The party is not the property of a family. The opinion of all concerned is important. The MLAs are in touch with me. The pros and cons will be discussed in the core committee meeting. I will also take up a state-wide tour,” he underlined.