Former Karnataka Dy CM Laxman Savadi joins Congress

In a major blow to the ruling BJP ahead of the May 10 Karnakata elections, former deputy chief minister Laxman Savadi has decided to join the Congress on Friday.

His decision came after a meeting with Karnataka Congress chief D K Shivakumar, Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly Siddaramaiah and Congress general secretary and party in-charge of Karnataka, Randeep Singh Surjewala.

"Savadi wants to become a member of Congress family on his own volition," Shivakumar told reporters in Bengaluru.

"We have not put any condition. Savadi feels that he has been humiliated. It is our responsibility to take such great leaders into the Congress Party. There are more than 9-10 sitting MLAs who want to join us but we don't have space to accommodate them," said Shivakumar.

Savadi, a BJP MLC is likely to meet the Legislative Council Chairman Basavaraj Horatti to tender his resignation from the Upper House this afternoon, after which he would formally join the Congress.

Laxman Savadi resigns from BJP

On April 12, Savadi quit the BJP, a day after the ruling party denied him a ticket to contest the upcoming Karnataka polls.

"I have certainly taken a decision. I have decided to resign from the primary membership of the party,'' Savadi said in a press conference.

He went on to say that he was not the one who goes around with a begging bowl. "I am not the one who goes around with a begging bowl. I am a self-respecting politician. I am not acting under the influence of anyone," he said.

Savadi, currently a BJP MLC, is a three-time MLA from Athani but lost in the 2018 elections to Kumathalli, who contested on a Congress ticket.

Kumathalli was among the group of defectors who helped the BJP to bring down the Congress-JD(S) coalition and form its government under the leadership of B S Yediyurappa in 2019.

Controversy surrounding Savadi

In 2012, Savadi was caught watching a porn clip on his phone in the state assembly along with another minister, CC Patil. He had denied watching porn in the assembly and said that he was "watching the footage to prepare for a discussion on the ill-effects of a rave party".

Savadi's move is a major setback for the BJP as he was the party's second most influential leader from the prominent Lingayat community in Karnataka.