Bengaluru: Agreeing with his son and state party chief, H D Kumaraswamy, JD(S) supremo, H D Deve Gowda on Monday said there was every reason for his party to rethink its support for the Congress in the BBMP, which is heading for a mayoral election in a month.
Speaking to reporters after releasing the list of his party office bearers here, Mr Gowda said people were beginning to point fingers at the JD(S) for its continued support for the Congress in the BBMP council owing to the corruption in the civic body.
“When an officer spoke about corruption in the BBMP, Mr Siddaramaiah promised to stem it, but has he done anything in the last one year? I don't think there is anything wrong in Mr Kumaraswamy talking about re-thinking our support. But we will take a decision on this at our Parliamentary Board meeting,” he added.
Asked about Bengaluru Development Minister K J George's statement that the JD(S)-Congress alliance would continue in the BBMP, he shot back, “He is free to say what he likes. But we have not given any indemnity bond to him pledging our party’s support.”
While observing that both the BJP and Congress were fast preparing for the 2018 assembly poll in the state, he said the JD(S) was catching up fast as well. But he admitted that unlike the two other parties, which had their poll slogans ready, the JD(S) had not come up with one yet. Asked why he did not attend the “BJP Bhagao” rally organised by former Bihar Chief Minister, Laloo Prasad Yadav and West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee, Mr Gowda said he had to keep away due to health reasons.
“But I support the cause. They asked me to send Mr Kumaraswamy, but he had gone to Israel and so I requested Mr Danish Ali to attend the meeting,” he said.
‘Don’t mind starting from zero seats’
Commenting sarcastically on a recent opinion poll conducted by C-fore on the likely results of the state Assembly elections if they are held now, which had given the Congress party 135 seats, Mr Gowda quipped that he did not mind starting from “zero seats”.
“I will start from zero as I cannot get anything less than that. Let us see how much I will reach and how much others will get.”
“My style of living and working is different. I was not scared when stalwarts left the party. I have fought alone and I know how to fight elections. These things will not work,'' he said.
