The Congress is actively working to avert further significant defections following the return of former Karnataka Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar to the BJP, just nine months after he joined the Congress due to the denial of a ticket.
Shettar’s rejoining the BJP, following a meeting with Home Minister Amit Shah and other top leaders in Delhi on Thursday, has triggered speculation that more Congress leaders may consider switching sides ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.
In response, Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar took swift action by meeting party MLA Laxman Savadi, who had also joined the Congress before the 2023 state elections. Shivakumar, the state party chief, expressed confidence to reporters that no one else would leave the Congress. He asserted, “No one will leave. Shettar leaving is another matter. The Congress treated him with utmost respect even after the people rejected him by 35,000 votes (in the state polls).”
Interestingly, Shivakumar had dismissed speculations about Shettar’s return to the BJP just the previous evening, highlighting how the Congress provided Shettar with a political opportunity by inducting him into the Legislative Council, despite his loss in the state election from his home constituency of Hubli-Dharwad Central.
While Shettar’s return to the BJP is perceived as an attempt by the saffron party to regain the confidence of the Lingayat community, a significant support base for many years, state minister M.B. Patil ruled out such possibilities. He emphasized that the Congress has 34 Lingayat MLAs compared to the BJP’s 17, and he expressed confidence in maintaining Lingayat support during the Lok Sabha elections.
Labour minister Santosh Lad, among others, celebrated Shettar’s exit, expressing personal satisfaction. Congress workers in Hubli protested against Shettar, burning an effigy and chanting “good riddance,” while others pledged to teach him a lesson if he chose to contest in the Lok Sabha elections.