Bengaluru: BJP state president B.S.Yeddyurappa claimed that he has not invited rebel Congress leaders to join the party.
Speaking to reporters after attending the 63rd martyrdom day programme of Jana Sangh founder Dr Shyama Prasad Mukherjee here on Thursday, Mr. Yeddyurappa said, “An aide of Srinivas Prasad and Ambareesh (the dropped ministers) had made a courtesy call to me, I did not discuss any political development during the conversation.”
“Mr. Srinivas Prasad is a senior and experienced leader of the Congress. He had functioned as Union Minister in the Atal Behari Vajpayee cabinet. I am too small a leader to advise him. He is capable of taking his own decisions”, Mr Yeddyurappa said.
“The reshuffle of the Cabinet is purely an internal affair of the Congress party and the prerogative of the Chief Minister. The BJP would not like to comment on that. But we are naturally worried over the uncertainty that has affected the development process. I request the Chief Minister to at least now take up developmental work on a war footing,” Mr Yeddyurappa said.
“Since the BJP has a strong organizational network in 224 Assembly constituencies, it will not take a hasty decision by inviting leaders of other parties”, Mr. Yeddyurappa said.
He also said that any major political developments including the induction of leaders from other parties would take place only six months before the Assembly elections in 2018.
Earlier, he recalled the contributions of erstwhile Jana Sangh founder Dr Shyama Prasad Mukherjee and Jagannath Rao Joshi.
