The BJP said that the rumors of Karnataka MLAs defecting back to the Congress were not true. They are working to keep the MLAs who had previously left the Congress and joined BJP in 2019. ST Somashekar, a BJP MLA, met with Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah, but they said the meeting was about development works. Somashekar was one of the Congress leaders who had joined BJP in 2019. He skipped a meeting called by former chief minister BS Yediyurappa in Bengaluru. Another MLA from the BJP, Byrathi Basavaraj, did not attend the meeting on Friday, which has raised questions about what is happening within the BJP party. BJP leader and minister Rajeev Chandrashekhar from Karnataka said they will not respond to made-up questions about Operation Palm by the Congress Party to get back at the BJP for Operation Lotus in 2019. Another meeting on Sunday between JDs’ Ayanur Manjunath (who also joined the BJP in 2019) and Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar has fueled speculation that things may not be going well within the BJP in Karnataka. Manjunath said that Shivakumar is his political mentor. Shivakumar reminded the BJP that they had taken Congress MLAs in 2019 to gain power in the state. 17 Congress and JDS MLAs had joined the BJP in 2019, allowing a BJP government to be formed. The Operation Palm before the 2024 Lok Sabha polls has created uncertainty in Karnataka, as the BJP is trying to keep the 25 out of 28 segments it won in the 2019 elections.
