Karnataka Elections 2023: Former state Chief Minister and six-time MLA, Jagadish Shettar will on Wednesday reach Delhi to meet BJP national president JP Nadda, after he was denied a ticket for the upcoming Karnataka assembly polls. Presently an MLA from Hubli-Dharwad Central, Shettar said that everything will be specified later by the party high command, reported ANI. The 67-year-old BJP leader, voiced his dissent saying that he would contest the election again and requested the BJP to reconsider their decision.
According to ANI, Shettar said, "I will reach Delhi today to meet the party's national president JP Nadda. I expect positive things will happen. In the coming days, the party high command and state leaders will specify everything."
Shettar's name does not feature on BJP's first list of 189 candidates for Karnataka elections. However, the party has also not announced the name of the candidate from Shettar's present seat - Hubli-Dharwad Central. It is being assumed that his meeting with Nadda is going to be about his candidature in the upcoming state polls. He has earlier made it clear that he will contest the Karnataka elections slated to take place on the 10th of next month.
The BJP said that Shettar won't be given a ticket this year. Shettar is, however, determined to fight the election, and had asked the central leadership to reconsider its decision just hours before the list was announced. Later, at the press conference held to announce the names of the candidates, Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said the BJP high command would convince him to drop his plan to contest the polls and stay on as a party leader.
Shettar, a former BJP state unit president and Assembly Speaker, said he had worked hard for 30 years to build the party in the north Karnataka region and had been loyal to the party. He questioned the BJP's decision to disallow him from contesting in the Karnataka election, given that there was no corruption charge or allegation against him. He also cited the public's positive response in a report of the survey conducted by the BJP ahead of the election.
Shettar said that if the party had informed him two to three months ago, he would have respected their decision. However, with the nomination only two days away, he felt hurt by their decision.
He also expressed his disappointment that loyalty seemed to have turned out to be a drawback for him and wondered whether there was no respect for it. Shettar said that he was offered a different position. He was asked to discuss it with the high command. However, he said that he felt insulted and said he should have been treated respectfully as a senior leader and former Chief Minister of the state, PTI reported.
Shettar's announcement has sparked controversy within the BJP, with many party members expressing their support for him and questioning the party's decision. The situation has also highlighted the internal power struggles within the BJP as the party prepares for the Assembly elections in Karnataka.
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