Former Chief Minister and JD(S) State president H.D. Kumaraswamy on Monday offered an olive branch to ease the differences with the BJP in Hassan district by referring to former BJP MLA Preetham Gowda as “brother”, while the latter remained tough and said becoming brothers was impossible in politics.
Earlier in the day, Mr. Kumaraswamy, who visited Channangihalli in Hassan taluk to take part in a temple programme, spoke to the media. Referring to Mr. Preetham’s repeated statements that the BJP should get a chance to contest for the Hassan Lok Sabha seat, Mr. Kumaraswamy said he would talk with him and settle the issue. “He is also my younger brother. We will sit and settle the issues,” he said. At one point, Mr. Kumaraswamy also said that if Mr. Preetham wanted to contest for the Lok Sabha seat, he would consider that as well.
However, later in the day, Mr. Preetham hit back stating that in politics it was impossible to become ‘brothers’. “Mr. Kumaraswamy’s brother was sitting with him. He may have to talk to him, not me. I will go by the decisions and directions of the BJP party leaders and the high command, he said.
Responding to Mr. Kumaraswamy’s address to him as ‘brother’, Mr. Preetham said in 2023, he appealed to the voters to defeat me in the Assembly polls. “Now, he calls me brother. I don’t know what he will call me in the next election,” he said.
Mr. Preetham was defeated by JD(S) candidate Swaroop Prakash in the Assembly polls in 2023.
