Bangalore: Breaking his four-decade-old association with BJP, estranged Karnataka strongman B S Yedddyurappa on Friday resigned from its primary membership, but said he would not rock the Jagadish Shettar government.
Bidding an emotional adieu to the party he had helped bring to power as the first BJP government in the South, Yeddyruppa said he had sent in his resignation to party President Nitin Gadkari.
After announcing his exit to supporters at a meeting at Freedom Park here, Yeddyurappa went in a procession to Vidhana Soudha, the state secretariat and submitted his resignation from the assembly membership to Speaker K G Bopaiah.
“It is an unforgettable and painful day for me,” said the 70-year-old Lingayat leader, adding he was leaving the party with which he was associated for the past 40 years out of inevitability and in the interests of the people.
Yeddyurappa, who rebuffed central leaders’ last ditch attempts to retain him in BJP, said, “Some people” in the party ‘betrayed’ him and ‘stabbed’ him in the back and tried to weaken him.
The exit of Yeddyurappa is unlikely to make an immediate impact on the stability of the Shettar government as he himself said he does not want to rock the boat and wants it to complete its full term.
Yeddyurappa has announced he would formally launch the “Karnataka Janata Party” on December 9 at Haveri.
Yeddyurappa expressed optimism that KJP would herald a new era of regional parties in the state and claimed it is the only solution to take the state on the growth path.
“KJP will herald a new era of regional parties in Karnataka. Fomation of regional parties had has stood firm in states like Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Orissa, Tamil Nadu and Bihar,” he said at a rally organised by his supporters at Freedom Park here.
He said regional parties have succeeded in taking their states on the growth path through their MPs, who help get funds from the central government.
“I am floating KJP so that it wins the elections and sends at least 20 MPs to Parliament, which would help bring central funds to the state,” Yeddyurappa added.
Yeddyurappa reiterated he had not quit BJP to be Chief Minister and form KJP, but make Karnataka a model state. (PTI)
“I am taking this decision in the interest of the state and its people,” he added.
He said he is leaving BJP with a heavy heart. “This step is not bringing me any happiness nor peace to my mind.”
Yeddyurappa said he could have brought down the first BJP government in Karnataka at a time when 75 legislators displayed their loyalty while tendering his resignation as Chief Minister on central leadership’s request. “I could have done this, but being a disciplined soldier of the party, I did not take this extreme step,” he said.
Yeddyurappa said he had not shown any discrimination against minorities as Chief Minister and would continue to do so if his party was voted to power.
He claimed he was the first Chief Minister in the country to stop illegal export of ore, but the authorities concerned suprisingly tried to make him out to be a criminal.”I have not done anything criminal. I will prove my innocence,” he stated.
Yeddyurappa said he was overwhelmed by people’s support wherever he went soon after resigning as Chief Minister in 2007 when JDS refused to support his government over disagreement on sharing of ministries.
He said people had once again supported him after he was asked to step down as Chief Minister in 2011 by the BJP central leadership after the Lokayukta report on illegal mining indicted him. PTI BDN MSR APR BS 11301615(PTI)