Former Karnataka chief minister Jagdish Shettar, who had previously left the BJP to join the Congress ahead of the state assembly polls, officially rejoined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday. Citing his longstanding association with the BJP and the desire of many well-wishers, Shettar returned to his old party.
The Lingayat leader made his re-entry into the BJP in the presence of former Karnataka chief minister B S Yediyurappa, Union ministers Bhupender Yadav and Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Karnataka BJP president B Y Vijayendra, and party's media head Anil Baluni. It is reported that Shettar had discussions with Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP national president J P Nadda before deciding to rejoin the party.
Shettar had initially joined the Congress after being denied a ticket to contest in the assembly polls. However, after losing the elections, the Congress appointed him as a Member of the Legislative Council (MLC). Shettar has now resigned from the MLC position to rejoin the BJP. During the rejoining ceremony, he also praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership, expressing his belief that India has been strengthened under Modi's guidance.
(With Agency Inputs)
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