N. Mahesh joins BJP

He was expelled from BSP in 2019

N. Mahesh, Kollegal MLA who was formerly with the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) which expelled him over violating party diktat in 2019, joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday. Mr. Mahesh, who has worked in the Bahujan movement for over 20 years, became an MLA for the first time from the BSP in 2018. However, the BSP expelled him in July 2019 when he, contrary to the party diktat, abstained from the trust vote of H.D. Kumaraswamy and remained Independent till now. “I have joined the BJP for the development of the country, trusting the leadership of Narendra Modi for the country and B.S. Yediyurappa in the State. I am also guided by the ideals of B.R. Ambedkar,” Mr. Mahesh said. At the programme, Mr. Yediyurappa said his aim was to bring the party back to power with 130 to 140 seats in 2023 and Mr. Mahesh, a Dalit from Old Mysore region, had been a shot in the arm for the party. “Many leaders are joining our party accepting our ideology. We need to welcome more Dalit leaders,” he said.