Amit Shah Exclusive: 'Nobody who follows BJP's ideology can ever join the Congress'

Speaking exclusively to Asianet Suvarna News Editor Ajit Hanamakkanavar, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said: "Both will lose the election by a margin of over 30,000 votes. Take it from me. Call me after the counting (of votes). I have known the Hubli unit since the 1990s. Hubli does not vote for individuals; it votes for the party."

Karnataka Election 2023 Amit Shah Exclusive on Jagadish Shettar Laxman Savadi joing Congress

Team Newsable

First Published Apr 30, 2023, 9:00 PM IST

Union Home Minister Amit Shah has said that the departure of former Karnataka Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar and former Deputy Chief Minister Laxman Savadi from the Bharatiya Janata Party will not impact the saffron party's chances in the forthcoming state assembly elections; in fact, if anything both the leaders will lose by a big margin from their seats. Watch this excerpt from Amit Shah's super exclusive interview with Asianet News Network.

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Shettar, a staunch RSS man from the Lingayat community, joined the Congress after being a part of the BJP for several decades. He is contesting the elections from his Hubli-Dharwad Central seat. BJP has named Mahesh Tenginkai as the challenger to take on Shettar in his traditional stronghold.

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Savadi, who also is a prominent Lingayat leader, joined the Congress after being an MLA on the BJP ticket. He will now be taking on BJP's Mahesh Kumathalli in the Athani assembly constituency.

Asked about the likely impact that the exit of the two-party heavyweights will have on voters across the state, Shah said: "The electorate also thinks from the point of view that a certain person has been made a legislator a certain number of times, one was made chief minister while another was made deputy chief minister... How can someone from BJP -- an ideology-based party worker -- think of joining the Congress? That individual can only go if they entered politics for selfish reasons. In fact, they have exposed themselves. People are not like journalists. People see the person's character."

Denying any miscommunication behind the unceremonious exit of the two leaders, the Union Home Minister said: "There was no miscommunication. The party had taken the decision that they would not contest the elections. The decision was conveyed. I informed them myself that they would not contest and that they should continue doing party work. There was no foul play. They could not digest it (being denied a ticket). And there are many who are denied a ticket."

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Shah also took a dig at the Congress for "feeling confident" after taking in those who deserted the BJP. He said, "This shows their bankruptcy; the fact that they have no leadership. If their win is dependent on someone switching over from the BJP, they just made this evident that their own leaders are incapable of winning the election for the party. It means you are unable to win on your own."

Watch the full interview below