Will quit Congress if Pratapchandra Shetty is not dropped from list: Jayaprakash Hegde

BENGALURU: The ruling Congress could well be rocked by dissent even before selection of candidates for next month's polls to the Legislative Council with former Member of Parliament Jayaprakash Hegde threatening to quit the party and contest as an independent in case veteran leader Oscar Fernandes has his way and renominates Pratapchandra Shetty.

Speaking to Deccan Chronicle, a senior leader close to Mr Hegde said, “Mr Hegde is upset with Mr Shetty ever since he lost the Lok Sabha elections by a narrow margin and feels that Mr Shetty was responsible for his defeat. Moreover, Mr Shetty issued pamphlets stating that he will not contest. So, Mr Hegde evinced interest in contesting elections this time.”

According to the leader Mr Hegde met Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president, Dr G. Parameshwar and demanded that Mr Shetty’s name be dropped from the list. “Dr Parameshwar did his best to convince Mr Hegde, but the latter did not heed. Then, Dr Parameshwar expressed his helplessness as Mr Shetty's candidature was recommended by none other than Mr Fernandes as per the party’s standard procedure. On hearing this, Mr Hegde told Dr Parameshwar that he will not mind quitting the party and contesting as an independent,” the leader explained.

The leader claimed that Mr Hegde even conveyed his decision to Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi’s programme coordinator, Vijayinder Singhal, that Mr Fernandes was responsible for “decimation” of Congress in the coastal region. “Mr Fernandes feeds wrong information to central leaders who are not aware of the reality at the grass root level,” Mr Hegde reportedly told the central leader.

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