New Delhi: In yet another setback for JD(S), its four-time MLA from Arkalgud of Hassan district, AT Ramaswamy, joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) a day after his resignation on Friday, news agency ANI reported.
Ahead of the Karnataka elections, Ramaswamy joined the saffron party in the presence of Union minister and BJP leader Anurag Thakur on Saturday.
"I’m really impressed by the way party (BJP) is working. I’m a victim of money power because I always used to talk about irregularities and corruption. Without any condition I’m joining BJP. I just want an opportunity to serve people," ANI quoted Ramaswamy as saying.
Ramaswamy had submitted his resignation as an MLA to Legislative Assembly Secretary MK Vishalakshi on Friday as Speaker Vishweshwar Hegde Kageri was not in the office.
Meanwhile, Kudligi BJP MLA NY Gopalakrishna also resigned as legislator on Friday.
According to reports, Gopalakrishna had recently met senior state Congress leaders DK Shivakumar and Siddaramaiah and held discussions.
He was earlier with the Congress and had got elected from Molakalmuru Assembly segment in Chitradurga district four times (1997, 1999, 2004 and 2008).
On not getting the Congress ticket in 2018, he had joined the BJP ahead of the state elections. The party gave him a ticket from Kudligi in Vijayanagara district instead of Molakalmuru, as senior leader Sriramulu was fielded from there. He had won from there.
JD(S) MLA S R Srinivas (Gubbi Srinivas alias Vasu) also joined the Congress on Thursday, after resigning as MLA on March 27.
Earlier this month, two MLCs from BJP, Puttanna and Baburao Chinchansur, also quit from their Legislative Council membership to join the grand old party.
State Congress chief Shivakumar said on Thursday that there is a "long list of people" wishing to join the party and it will be made known in stages, in the days to come.