Former Karnataka CM Jagadish Shettar returns to BJP in another jolt for Congress

Former Karnataka Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar, who joined Congress last year before the Karnataka assembly election, returned to BJP on Thursday.

For the grand old party, the jold comes a day after Trinamool Congres supremo Mamata Banerjee and AAP, of the India alliance, said they would go solo in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections from the state.

Shettar, 67, joined the BJP in the presence of former Karnataka Chief Minister and senior party leader BS Yediyurappa, his son and state party chief BY Vijayendra. Shettar, who belongs to the politically influential Lingayat community, had ditched the BJP in April last year when he was denied a ticket. He subsequently joined the Congress.

The grand old party handed him a ticket to contest from the Hubli-Dharwad Central assembly constituency, a seat he represented when he was in the BJP. 

However, he lost to BJP's Mahesh Tenginakai by a huge margin.

So who is Jagadish Shettar?
Jagadish Shettar, a six-time MLA, served as the Karnataka Chief Minister for 10 months between 2012 and 2013. He began his political career in the 1980s and held various positions within the BJP, including state president and leader of the opposition in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly.

The 67-year-old Lingayat strongman held various ministerial positions in the Karnataka government, including the portfolio of Rural Development and Panchayat Raj.

He was also the Speaker of the Karnataka Assembly, when the BJP first won the state in 2008.