Alliance with BJP: Another minority leader in K’taka quits JD(S)

Bengaluru: JD(S) vice-president from Tumakuru district, considered a stronghold of the party, resigned from his post in protest against the party’s alliance with BJP on Wednesday.

S. Shafi Ahmad, a prominent minority leader, sent his resignation letter to former prime minister H.D. Deve Gowda and ex-chief minister H.D. Kumaraswamy on WhatsApp.

In his two line resignation letter, Ahmad stated that he is resigning from the JD(S) party and the post of the vice-president with immediate effect.

He had quit the Congress party and joined JD(S) in the last Assembly elections.

However, there is no clarity about his future move.

After the party decided to join hands with the BJP ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, the minority leaders from JD(S) party held a meeting.

Meanwhile, party state president C.M. Ibrahim is yet to comment on the development but sources claim that he too is contemplating to quit the party.

Deve Gowda family’s move to hold talks with Union Home Minister Amit Shah in New Delhi without Ibrahim before the announcement of the alliance had outraged the minority cadres.

The Karnataka unit vice president of Janata Dal(Secular) Syed Shafiulla Saheb, on last Saturday had resigned from the party, expressing his unhappiness over the alliance with the saffron party.

He had also held meetings with other Muslim leaders of the party regarding the “future course of action”.

According to sources, the JD(S) holds a “considerable influence” over the Muslim community in the state. In fact, on many occasions, Muslims also opted for JD(S) over the Congress.

However, the alliance has come as a shocker to the Muslim community, with some political observers saying the party is likely to lose its support base.

Shafiulla, in his resignation letter, said: “I would like to state that I have worked hard and served the party in order to serve the society and the community only because our party believed and was standing on the secular credentials, except when our leader (H.D.) Kumaraswamy had earlier joined hands with BJP to form the government in the state.

“I would also like to mention that I had opted to stay outside the party for the period during which our state unit of the party had joined with the BJP to form the state government. Since the party’s senior leaders are now deciding to join hands with the BJP, I am left with no option but to tender my resignation from the party’s Senior Vice President’s Office of the state and also my Primary Membership of the party.”