Minister for Parliamentary Affairs and Tourism H.K. Patil said here on Saturday that Jagadish Shettar’s return to the BJP fold will not have any impact on the Congress in the Lok Sabha polls.
He said the strength of the Congress was in its welfare projects like the guarantee schemes which has lifted crores of people above the poverty line.
Speaking to media persons here on Saturday Mr. Patil -with respect to Jagadish Shettar returning to the BJP fold - said those who are committed to the ideology and leadership of the Congress and are committed to its welfare schemes will stay and those who are not, will leave.
“There is no watch and ward system in the Congress which is like an ocean and the party does not police the rank and file of the party,” he added.
The guarantee scheme has benefitted crores and the BJP which is dismayed by it, is now encouraging defection. But the BJP’s ploy of encouraging defection will not matter as they have adopted similar tactics in the past but the party won 135 seats in the Assembly elections in 2023, he said.
In reply to a question Mr. Patil denied the possibility of Laxman Savadi also following suit and emulating Mr. Shettar. “He has already made his stance clear and is a gentleman,” said Mr.Patil.
On the remarks of senior Congress leader and Davanagere MLA Shamanur Shivashankarappa that people should re-elect B.Y. Raghavendra, BJP MP from Shivamogga, Mr. Patil was evasive.
He said Shivashankarappa is a senior Congress leader and holds a responsible position and it was unlikely that he has said what has been attributed to him. “Maybe it was wrongly reported or comprehended by the media and I will have to ascertain the truth before commenting,” said Mr. Patil.
