"Amit Shah Called Him Personally": BJP On Karnataka Leader's Exit

Former Karnataka Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar resigned from the state assembly on Sunday, capping a days-long saga of sulk after being denied a ticket by his party BJP to contest next month's assembly election.

The six-time MLA was hoping to run for the Hubballi-Dharwad central constituency but was turned down by the party. Mr Shettar also announced that he would be resigning from the BJP. Congress sources said he will join the party tomorrow.

Karnataka Chief Minster Basavaraj Bommai said even Union Home Minister Amit Shah called him on Saturday and tried to persuade him to stay back.

However, Mr Shettar reached Sirsi in Uttara Kannada district and handed over his resignation letter to assembly speaker Vishveshwar Hegde Kageri, who is also a BJP leader. He also announced his decision to quit the party at a press conference in Hubballi.

"I have decided to resign from the legislative assembly and the BJP. I have built and raised this party from scratch. But they (some party leaders) created a situation for me to resign from the party," he said.

Mr Shettar's resignation came after Mr Bommai and Union Ministers Pralhad Joshi and Dharmendra Pradhan attempted to convince him to stay in the party, but he remained firm in his decision to contest the assembly election.

"The BJP national president JP Nadda and Union Home Minister Amit Shah had promised a big post to him in Delhi. I promised Shettar that the ticket will be given to the candidate of his choice but he refused," Mr Bommai said.

"Shettar's was on the list of the district-level core committee but the denial of the ticket was the decision of the High Command. It was time to bring changes. Amit Shah called him personally on Saturday," he said.

The Lingayat leader accused some party leaders of creating a situation for him to resign and alleged there was a "systematic conspiracy" against him.

The departure is a significant blow to the BJP, as he was a key leader in north Karnataka. Earlier, former deputy chief minister Laxman Savadi also resigned from the BJP and joined the Congress after being denied a ticket.

The 67-year-old leader said that he will contest the assembly election regardless of the party's decision. He also warned that if he was denied a ticket, it would have a bearing on 20 to 25 assembly seats in north Karnataka, apart from the state.

The BJP leadership reportedly asked Mr Shettar not to contest the assembly election to make way for young people, and even offered him a gubernatorial position. However, he refused to step aside.

Karnataka is set to vote on May 10. The results will be declared on May 15.