Will join BJP, says K'taka MP Sumalatha

In a boost to the BJP and JD(S) alliance in Karnataka, independent MP Sumalatha Ambareesh from the Mandya Lok Sabha seat, on Wednesday declared her support to the BJP putting an end to the speculation that she would contest as an independent candidate.

Addressing a meeting of her supporters in Mandya city on Wednesday, Sumalatha also announced that she would join the BJP.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah had made a personal phone call to her during his visit to Bengaluru and spoke to her to support former CM and JD(S) state President H.D. Kumaraswamy.

Kumaraswamy is fielded as the NDA candidate from the Mandya Parliamentary seat to send a strong signal from the BJP and JD(S) alliance to the state, especially the south Karnataka region.

Kumaraswamy had met Sumalatha Ambareesh at her residence and sought her support. She had defeated his son, Nikhil Kumaraswamy, in the 2019 general election in Mandya.

She said, “The BJP government at the Centre had released Rs 4,000 crore grants to Mandya Parliamentary constituency. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had taken me into confidence, spoke to me and made me understand the consequences of any of my decisions. Prime Minister Modi told me that the party needs my leadership.”

“This is the way of showing respect to any person. Prime Minister Modi has taken our country to a different level. Today, all nations are recognizing India as a force. There is no trace of corruption during his rule,” she said.

Sumalatha further stated she is sacrificing the seat for which she is a sitting MP. “Common people won’t understand the intricacies of politics. If I contest as an independent candidate, who will benefit from it? A senior leader from the Congress party had stated his party does not require me. Even after this statement, how can I even think of joining the Congress party?”

The Congress party has fielded industrialist Venkataramane Gowda aka Star Chandru from the Mandya seat.

The contest is seen as a direct contest between the DyCM and Congress state President D.K. Shivakumar and JD(S) President, former CM Kumaraswamy.