Madhu Bangarappa to join Congress in April

Bengaluru: After meeting the Leader of Opposition Siddaramaiah on Thursday, Janata Dal (S) leader Madhu Bangarappa formally announced that he would quit the party and join the Congress.

Bangarappa is the son of former chief minister late S. Bangarappa, one of the tallest backward class leaders of the State. His elder brother S. Kumar Bangarappa is presently a BJP MLA.

After his meeting with Siddaramaiah here, Madhu told reporters that his father became CM from the Congress and it's like 'home coming' for him. "I will be formally joining the Congress in April after organising a massive rally in Shivamogga district," he said and added that he would not be a part of the March 19 Congress rally in Shivamogga.

Madhu said that he cannot be a part of the party's programme unless he joins it formally. "I have made my decision to join on MahaShivaratri, which is one of the auspicious days to begin any work," he said.

He reasoned that his father's friends and family wellwishers are more in Congress than any other party. "Though my father had friends in all the parties, he had more friends in Congress. They advised me to join the Congress, therefore, I am joining the party," he claimed.

On the reason for leaving JD(S), Madhu stated that his personal equations with former PM H D Deve Gowda and his son Kumaraswamy will remain 'intact'.

"Personally I respect both. There is no bitterness over anything between our families. It is just a matter of political decision," he explained.

He said that elections are like examinations and in this examination only one person can pass. "I may lose an election, it doesn't mean that I have lost everything," he added.

Earlier, in 2019, he was a consensus candidate of JDS-Congress and took on Karnataka Chief Minister B. S. Yediyurappa's son B. Y. Raghavendra in Shivamogga Lok Sabha seat. Congress veteran leaders like Kagodu Thimmappa, former CM Siddaramiah and KPCC president D K Shivakumar had campaigned for Bangarappa in the district.

Interestingly, the Congress leaders and the District Congress Committee supported him in a big way. Most of the Congress leaders mentioned their association with his father.

But Bangarappa lost the election and has been keeping a low profile since then. He maintained distance not only from the JDS, but even from leaders like former CM H D Kumaraswamy and the district party leaders. He did not take part in any programmes of the party during this period.

Congress wants to encash late Bangarappa's charisma by inducting his son into the party fold. His induction will help in attracting a large chunk of Idiga community (toddy tappers), to which he belongs besides, the brand Bangrappa still evokes feel good factor among various communities in the state.

Besides this, Congress veteran and socialist leader Kaagodu Thimmappa, who too belong to the same community was at loggerheads with late Bangarappa over his style of functioning, but he had been rallying hard to get Madhu Bangarappa back into the party fold.