After the exit polls conveyed a clean sweep for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Karnataka, the senior Congress leader and legislator Roshan Baig of Shivajinagar has asked the Muslim community in the state to compromise with NDA if the circumstances demand.
Roshan Baig, while talking to the media on Monday hinted on quitting the Congress party saying that he cannot remain in a party where there is no respect for the minority community. "Well if NDA is coming back to power, I humbly appeal to Muslim brothers to learn to compromise with the situation," he told the media.
The controversial remark by Baig has stirred many rows in the current political tensions in Karnataka. He said that "We must not remain loyal to one party. What happened to Muslims in Karnataka? He said that if the need arises Muslims should join hands with the BJP as the Congress had given only one party ticket to a Muslim candidate in the state. He also said that no seats were given to the Christians.
When asked about his decision to quit the Congress party, he said that if the circumstances demand so, he would do it without any hesitation as the Muslims cannot remain in a party where there is no respect. "If someone makes us sit with love and affection, we will sit with them," he said, reports PTI.
He also pointed out at the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president Dinesh Gundu Rao and Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader Siddaramaiah for this downfall by criticising them for conducting a flop poll campaign.
Baig said that he is not surprised with the exit poll results as he knew from the beginning that the Congress will fail this time due to its poor election campaigns. He also added that all the top party leaders of Congress should have some idea about the ground realities of the state. He further called the All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary in-charge KC Venugopal, a buffoon who led this failure.
Dinesh Gundu Rao reacted to the claims made by Roshan Baig, "It's unbecoming of a politician of his stature to be speaking like this, it ranks of pure political opportunism. We will take the required action when the time is right."
