Bengaluru, Jan 7 (NationPress) Leaders of the BJP in Karnataka's Mandya district are expressing their dissatisfaction over an alliance with the JD(S) for the local body elections. This follows a declaration from former Prime Minister and Rajya Sabha member H.D. Deve Gowda, indicating that his party intends to participate in the local elections independently.

Sources reveal that BJP officials vocalized their grievances regarding Deve Gowda’s statements during a recent core committee gathering. Key BJP figures including former MP Sumalatha Ambareesh and former Minister K.C. Narayana Gowda have shown their discontent, especially considering that the BJP had previously ceded the Mandya Lok Sabha seat to Union Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy and campaigned tirelessly for his success.

Narayana Gowda shared with the media on Wednesday, “Deve Gowda has proclaimed that his party will contest the local body elections independently. At that moment, we surrendered our right to compete for the Mandya Lok Sabha seat, despite having a sitting MP. We persuaded our party’s leadership to allocate the seat to the JD(S) and campaigned vigorously for Kumaraswamy during the Lok Sabha elections alongside the sitting MP.”

“Kumaraswamy emerged victorious and secured a cabinet position at the Centre. It now seems they no longer require our support. The BJP is already robust in this area. Sumalatha Ambareesh previously won the Lok Sabha seat from Mandya with BJP backing, and I too have served as an MLA. We wish to convey that the BJP is ready to independently contest the local body elections,” he added.

“We will participate in the elections solely as the BJP. There’s no reason for concern. When the ticket for Union Minister Kumaraswamy was announced, both Sumalatha Ambareesh and I personally visited voters to advocate for the BJP-JD(S) alliance. We assured them that the alliance would endure,” Narayana Gowda emphasized.

Meanwhile, BJP leader Sumalatha Ambareesh stated that clarity regarding a potential alliance with the JD(S) for the local body elections remains elusive. “Former Prime Minister Deve Gowda has indicated that his party will contend independently in the local body elections. We will adhere to our party leadership’s guidance on this matter,” she remarked.

Recently, Deve Gowda declared that the JD(S) has resolved to take part in the local body elections on its own in Karnataka. “We cannot negotiate seat-sharing for local elections with either Prime Minister Narendra Modi or Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Discussions about seat-sharing will only occur for significant national elections such as the Assembly and Lok Sabha polls. My focus is on fortifying the regional party at the grassroots level,” he asserted.

He reaffirmed that the JD(S) will maintain its firm alignment with the NDA during the Assembly and Lok Sabha elections.