Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) national general secretary Elyas Thumbe has claimed that the Congress "ditched" his party in the 2018 Assembly elections in Karnataka though there was a tacit understanding between the two parties. “We are not going to commit the mistake (of associating with the Congress) again,” Thumbe said, talking to reporters at Bantwal in Dakshina Kannada district on Thursday.
Thumbe has been nominated as the SDPI candidate for Bantwal constituency in the coming elections. There is no question of SDPI withdrawing from the election fray this time, he said. Thumbe said the SDPI lost badly in the last elections because it trusted the Congress, which had offered to support the party in some constituencies.
He said the SDPI had decided to field 25 candidates during the last elections. However, there was an agreement as per a request from influential Congress leaders on two conditions. It was agreed that SDPI would contest only in three seats and Congress would field weak candidates there and ensure that SDPI candidates emerged victorious from those seats.
SDPI was to support Congress candidates in other seats in return, he said. However, the Congress did not stick to its word as some of its leaders joined the BJP. It was a betrayal from the Congress side, which led to BJP winning in many seats, Thumbe said. Thumbe said the SDPI has started focussing on election work right from the ground level this time.
Responding to a reporter's query on Thumbe's claims on Friday, Karnataka Congress' Campaign Committee chief M B Patil said, "Even now we expect that SDPI should support Congress to defeat the BJP."
"Congress is a secular party. SDPI cannot win (seats), they can divide votes, which will affect the Congress," he added.
Meanwhile, senior BJP leader and Union Minister of State Shobha Karnadlaje said it was clear that Siddaramaiah as Chief Minister of the Congress government helped the Popular Front of India (PFI), Karnataka Forum for Dignity (KFD), by filing 'B report' on cases against them and releasing them, for the sake of "adjustment politics" with the SDPI, and to appease a particular community.
"Congress and SDPI are two sides of the same coin, there is no difference between them. Congress and SDPI's relationship needs to be investigated. Discussions should happen on this and people should understand the Congress' mindset," she told media in Bengaluru.