Last Monday, the Janata Dal (Secular) formally allied with the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), which is led by the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP), to compete in the 2024 Lok Sabha Elections. Syed Shafiulla Saheb, vice president of the JDS in Karnataka, submitted his letter of resignation and left the organisation.

Sunday’s Shafiulla Saheb Sunday criticized the BJP for “maintaining silence over the Manipur situation which saw violence” Following the alliance with the BJP, Saheb, who served as the state unit vice-president, broke his links with the party.

He stated, “I have resigned from the JDS party following its decision to establish an alliance with the BJP, underscoring the ideological differences between the JD(S) and BJP.The JD(S) and BJP have differing ideologies that are centered on Hindutva”.
Shafiulla claimed that the JD(S) has joined a group that drives a wedge between castes and communities, adding, “I was with the group for the past 30 years. Our party has a strong secular foundation, and we have consistently promoted secularism’s ideals among voters and the entire public”.

According to news agency ANI, he stated, “Now, if my party is joining forces with a party that creates a rift between the communities and caste…that preaches and propagates and acts on a communal agenda, we the secular leaders oppose it.”

Shaifullah made note of the difficulty he has adjusting, saying, “Even if it is for survival, people like me find it difficult to adjust to the kind of mental set up and the kind of propagation of hate in the country.”

He also criticized the Centre for its response to ethnic riots that have been occurring in Manipur since May. “What transpired during the Manipur riots? Both the State and the Centre have BJP governments. Under the BJP government’s nose, violence erupted. However, the administration chose to remain mute and avoided confrontation,” he argued.

After meeting Union Home Minister and Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Amit Shah in Parliament on Thursday, former prime minister and patriarch of the Janata Dal (Secular) HD Deve Gowda and his son Kumaraswamy officially joined the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) on Friday.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the JD(S) had allied with the Congress, but the parties took a beating as the BJP swept 25 out of the 28 seats in Karnataka, while the Congress and JDS each managed to capture one seat. Even an independent candidate backed by the BJP won from the Mandya constituency.