B.S. Yediyurappa leads attack on Shettar and Savadi, calls their move “betrayal” and “unpardonable” 

Former chief minister B.S. Yediyurappa lashed out at Jagadish Shettar and Laxman Savadi, who have quit the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) upset over the high command denying them tickets in the upcoming Assembly polls.

“The party has given all opportunities possible to Jagadish Shettar and Laxman Savadi. Mr. Shettar was even now promised to be made a minister in the Union government. But still he has resigned and is all set to join the Congress. This is against the ideology he has been committed to all these decades. This is unpardonable,” former chief minister B.S. Yediyurappa lashed out at Mr. Shettar and Mr. Savadi, who have quit the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) upset over the high command denying them tickets in the upcoming Assembly polls.

He said the decision of the two defectors was a “betrayal of not just the party but even the people who recognised them because of the BJP”. 

Given that two prominent Lingayat leaders from Kittur Karnataka have quit the party, and the community is already said to be unhappy about Mr. Yediyurappa being replaced as chief minister, the party fielded the Lingayat strongman himself to lead the attack on the two defectors.

Mr. Yediyurappa lashed out at the Congress for “creating a fake narrative that Veerashaiva-Lingayats were being sidelined in the party” and appealed to the community not to heed such “fake narratives”. “The party has always stood with Veerashaiva-Lingayats and given their due and will continue to do so even in the future. I resigned as chief minister out of my own volition to make way for young blood and was not forced by anyone,” he said.

Mr. Yediyurappa launched a scathing attack on Mr. Shettar and Mr. Savadi. “Mr. Shettar comes from a family associated with the Sangh Parivar from Jan Sangh days. The party has given him ample opportunities — he was made Leader of Opposition in the Assembly, party president, minister, Speaker in the assembly and even Chief Minister. What else could the party have given him?,” he questioned. He said Mr. Shettar was offered a Rajya Sabha seat with a promise to be made a Union minister while one of his family members be fielded from his seat.

“The party hasn’t asked Mr. Shettar to retire. It has only asked him to make way for young blood, like I did,” he said, trying to counter Mr. Shettar’s allegation that the party had “gracelessly” asked him to retire. He also attacked Mr. Savadi and said he was made an MLC and Deputy Chief Minister despite losing his seat in 2018 and that he had promised Mr. Savadi that he would be made a minister in the new government, BSY said.

The former chief minister said he would tour the entire State including constituencies of Mr. Shettar and Mr. Savadi, “expose them and tell the truth to the people”. “I am touring the state working for the party even at 80 years of age. K. S. Eshwarappa, S. Angara and Raghupati Bhat, who have also been denied tickets, have set a great example for party workers. When a leader like Narendra Modi is leading the country, we should work for it irrespective of whether we get any positions or not,” Mr. Yediyurappa said.