Karnataka Elections 2023: BJP MLC H Vishwanath joins Congress, cites 'political reasons' for switch

On Thursday, BJP MLC H Vishwanath declared that he would be joining the Congress Party citing "political reasons."

This decision follows a series of resignations from the Karnataka BJP, with several leaders leaving after being denied their preferred nominations for the May 10 election.

Prominent leaders who left BJP

Some of the prominent leaders who have left the BJP recently include former deputy chief minister Laxman Savadi, minister S Angara, MLA M P Kumaraswamy, MLC R Shankar, Jagadish Shettar, and MLC Ayanur Manjunath.

Speaking to news agency ANI, BJP MLC H Vishwanath said: "Today I am joining Congress. There are political reasons due to which I am leaving BJP and joining Congress".

"Reasons are many. I am a backward man, particularly a village man. The philosophy of village and backward class, schedule class, and minorities live together, haves and have nots live together. This is a philosophy of the country, secular ideology but the BJP is against to it," he added.

"Definitely Congress is going to win (in the upcoming Karnataka election), that is not the reason to join it," he remarked.

Congress's final list of candidates

On Thursday, the Congress party released its final list of candidates for the upcoming Karnataka assembly elections.

The list includes Mohammed Shalem for Raichur, BV Rajeev Gowda for Sidlaghatta, S Anand Kumar for C V Raman Nagar (SC), HP Sridhar Gowda for Arkalgud, and Inayath Ali for Mangalore City North. However, the party had already made a change to its candidate list by replacing Mohammed Yousuf Savanur with Yasir Ahmed Khan Pathan from the Shiggaon constituency, currently under Chief Minister Basavraj Bommai, on Wednesday.

It is still unclear whether H Vishwanath will be accommodated as a Congress candidate.

The last date for filing nominations is today, April 20.

The Karnataka assembly polls will be held on May 10, and the results will be announced on May 13.