CP Yogeeshwara quitting party and joining Cong not unexpected, says K'taka BJP chief BY Vijayendra
Bengaluru, Oct 23: Karnataka BJP President B Y Vijayendra on Wednesday said party leader C P Yogeeshwara joining Congress ahead of November 13 Assembly by-polls was "not unexpected", and JD(S) has to decide on the candidate for Channapatna.
He said BJP and JD(S) will work together unitedly and ensure the NDA candidate wins in Channapatna.
In a dramatic development, Yogeeshwara on Wednesday quit his party and joined the Congress, which is now expected to field him as candidate from Channapatna.
"Today's developments were not unexpected, it was expected. Yogeeshwara has special contacts in all the parties, so he had made a political decision. I wish him the best. I along with other BJP leaders will discuss with JD(S) leaders led by H D Kumaraswamy, JD(S) will have to decide who is the candidate from Channapatna," Vijayendra said.
ALSO READ: C.P. Yogeshwar joins Congress; Big blow to BJP-JDS alliance
Speaking to reporters here, he said, whoever the JD(S) decides, both parties will face the bypolls together, and the BJP will put all its might to ensure the NDA candidate wins, and "I'm confident we will be successful."
"Yogeeshwara quitting the party will not have any impact on the party organisation....whether he is leader in the Old Mysuru region, I don't want to discuss....our goal is to strengthen the BJP's organisation in the Old Mysuru region, we will do it. There is no need to be in an illusion that we were dependent on Yogeeshwar for it. We have a strong team of workers," he added.
Channapatna will go for by-polls along with Sandur and Shiggaon segments. The last date for filing nominations is October 25, and the final date for withdrawal of papers is October 30.
Channapatna bypoll is necessitated as the seat fell vacant following the election of Kumaraswamy to Lok Sabha from Mandya.
With BJP ceding Channapatana seat to its NDA partner JD(S), Yogeeshwara, the actor-turned-politician, had appealed to leaders of the alliance to consider giving him a ticket from the saffron party. He had also said he had plans to contest as an independent if he didn't get the ticket.
There were plans to field Yogeeshwara on a JD(S) ticket, but he was not interested in it, sources said. "Instead, he wanted Kumaraswamy to support him as BJP candidate, which was not acceptable to the latter and his party," JD(S) sources said.
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Ex-CJI Chandrachud removed fear of law from political defectors, claims Sanjay Raut
Mumbai (PTI): Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Sunday slammed former Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud, alleging that he had removed the fear of the law from politicians who defected from parties in Maharashtra.
Raut claimed that by not deciding on the disqualification petitions, Chandrachud kept doors and windows open for defections.
The Shiv Sena (UBT) leader's statement comes after his party faced a severe drubbing in the state assembly elections, as it managed to clinch only 20 out of 95 seats it contested as part of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA).
The performance of the party's alliance partners was no better, with the Congress winning only 16 out of 101 seats and NCP (SP) getting only 10 out of 86 seats it contested.
Talking to reporters, Raut alleged, "He (Chandrachud) has removed the fear of the law from defectors. His name will be written in black letters in history."
Following the split in the undivided Shiv Sena in 2022, the party's faction headed by Uddhav Thackeray filed petitions in the Supreme Court on the disqualification of party MLAs who defected along with Eknath Shinde. The apex court put the onus on the assembly Speaker to decide on the disqualification petitions, which he did earlier this year, declaring the Sena bloc led by Shinde as the “real political party”.
Raut alleged that the results of the assembly election were pre-decided. If the then CJI had decided on the disqualification petitions on time, the outcome would have been different.
"We are sad but not disappointed. We will not leave the fight incomplete. Division of votes was also a factor, and the RSS played an important role in the election. The poisonous campaign impacted us negatively," he said.
He said the swearing-in ceremony for the new government should be held in neighbouring Gujarat.
Meanwhile, in his weekly column "Rokhthok" in the party mouthpiece "Saamana", the Shiv Sena (UBT) leader claimed that it was time to offer condolences to the Election Commission, which turned a blind eye to the use of money power.
"The courts have been in the ICU for a long time," he alleged.
