Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Saturday filed his nomination from the Shiggaon Assembly constituency for the upcoming elections in the state. This comes amid a string of resignations in the BJP over the distribution of tickets to contest the polls. On Friday, former Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister Laxman Savadi joined the Congress after the saffron party denied him a ticket and will be contesting the polls from the Athani constituency.
Former Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah said that BJP should not have treated Savadi like this by denying him a ticket at all despite the fact that he's a senior leader in the party.
"Laxman Savadi was denied a ticket (by the BJP). Since he is a senior leader, BJP shouldn't have treated him like this. The only condition Savadi has made (to Congress) is that he should be treated properly with all due respect," he added.
Several other leaders quit the party after being disgruntled with the ticket distribution. Karnataka's Minister for Fisheries and six-time MLA S Angara, Mudigere BJP MLA M P Kumaraswamy and BJP MLC R Shankar are among the leaders who have quit the party.
Also read: Karnataka Polls 2023: List of Ministers, Leaders Who Quit BJP After Being Denied Ticket
Karnataka goes to polls on May 10 while the result will be declared on May 13. The term for the 224-member Karnataka Assembly will end on May 24, 2023.
Karnataka Assembly Elections 2023
The incumbent Bharatiya Janata Party, looking for a second term in the state, has currently 119 MLAs in the Assembly while Congress has 75, and ally Janata Dal (Secular) has 28 legislators.
As the poll dates draw close, all three political parties began the spate of allegations and counter-allegations with the Congress and JD(S) trying to corner the government on the issue of corruption.
Meanwhile, the BJP, led by Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, aims to return to power in the state and has been stressing the Kannadiga issue and the recent decision to grant reservation to Lingayat and Vokkaliga communities by scrapping a religion-based reservation for the Muslim community.