Former Karnataka Chief Minister and Congress leader SM Krishna finally joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the presence of party president Amit Shah in New Delhi on Wednesday. The 84-year-old had resigned from the Congress in January.
Krishna described the move as "a very important stop in my onward journey" and also praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying that India has progressed "because of the leadership of PM Modi and Amit Shah." Krishna quit Congress after having been a loyal member of the party for 46 years.
According to reports, Krishna was supposed to join the saffron party two weeks back, but could not do so due to a death in his family. The former Congress leader's addition to the BJP is being seen as an important move by the party towards its efforts to regain power in Karnataka. It has huge political presence and influence in Karnataka, especially over the Lingayat community which is a major supporter of state BJP president BS Yeddyurappa.
Former Foreign Minister SM Krishna joins BJP pic.twitter.com/spM3fceBIF
— ANI (@ANI_news) March 22, 2017
"Even now, he was busy with some personal issues, but state BJP chief BS Yeddyurappa requested him to give an early date, and also spoke to party president Amit Shah to expedite matters," a source told the Hindu.
"Yeddyurappaji wants Krishna to campaign for the BJP for the Nanjangud (reserved) and Gundulpet Assembly seats (in Karnataka) that are due at the end of March," the source added.
Krishna himself has a strong influence over the Vokkaliga community, which is the second biggest dominant caste in Karnataka along with the Lingayat community which has a 19 percent vote share.
"Out of the 11 districts of Old Mysore area, Vokkaligas are considered dominant in 89 Assembly seats, out of a total of 224 seats in the Assembly. We are also counting on his appeal to urban voters in Bengaluru [with 28 seats in the Assembly], which prospered under his regime from 1999 to 2004," the source said.
