HDK says Cong cannot coax away MLAs for RS election

Dharwad/Hubballi: JD(S) leader and former CM HD Kumarswamy has exuded confidence that all the 32 JD(S) MLAs will stand by the party in the elections to Rajya Sabha from Karnataka. He said some MLAs from both BJP and Congress who have good personal relations with him will help the JD(S) candidate emerge victorious.
He said the Congress will not be successful in coaxing JD(S) MLAs into cross voting to get its second candidate Mansur Ali Khan elected.
“We have 32 MLAs. Of them three-four MLAs may be discontent with the leadership for some reasons. But this discontent will not make them ditch the party in the election. Opposition leader Siddaramaiah is daydreaming and is thinking of repeating the 2016 episode where seven JD(S) MLAs cross voted. Then he was chief minister. But this time he will fail utterly. They say Siddaramaiah killed two birds with one stone. Here the voting is open and cross voting is not easy. Whether Siddaramaiah’s stone hits two birds or hurt him only will be known after the results are out,” Kumarswamy said.
“Congress is accusing JD(S) of being the ‘B’ team of BJP. The results on June 10 will expose who is the leader of BJP’s ‘B’ team,” he said.
Denying that Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge had discussed with Deve Gowda about getting JD(S) candidate Reddy elected, Kumarswamy said Kharge, who is close to Kupendra Reddy, might have discussed with the Congress high command about withdrawing Khan from contest but not with Gowda.
“JD(S) giving 32 second preference vote to Khan will not help him win. On the contrary if Congress gives its 24 votes to JD(S), our candidate will win. We want to defeat BJP. Congress should decide whether it wants to defeat BJP’s third candidate or the lone JD(S) candidate,” Kumarswamy said.