Former Karnataka Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar who had joined the Congress ahead of Karnataka Assembly elections on April 16, 2023, has rejoined the BJP. Shettar rejoined the party in Delhi in the presence of former CM BS Yediyurappa and his son BY Vijayendra who is the BJP Karnataka president. In the press statement after rejoining, Shettar said that the Congress party leaders treated him with respect when he was in the party and thanked CM Siddaramaiah and DyCM DK Shivakumar. Shettar had joined the Congress after being denied a ticket to contest the Assembly elections from his constituency of Hubli-Dharwad Central.
Karnataka BJP state president BY Vijayendra said there was a great demand in the party to get Shettar back into the party fold. “We met Union Minister Amit Shah, and after discussions, Jagadish Shettar agreed to rejoin the party without any expectations. We are very happy,” he said. Shettar had joined the Congress after being denied the ticket to contest the Assembly elections.
Shettar said, “I am rejoining the BJP. The party has given me a lot of responsibilities earlier. After some issues, I went to Congress. There have been a lot of discussions in BJP, and many people, including BJP leaders, urged me to rejoin the party. BS Yediyurappa and BY Vijayendra also asked me to rejoin."
He added, "Under the leadership of PM Modi in the last 10 years, India has become a powerful country. To strengthen India, PM Narendra Modi should again become the Prime Minister. Keeping in mind that the BJP should grow stronger, I am joining the BJP again.”