Mysuru: Veteran Congress leader, Adaguru H. Vishwanath, on Monday denied he was joining the JD(S), but said state BJP chief B.S. Yeddyurappa had spoken to him over the telephone and he would decide on his future course of action shortly.

Speaking to reporters here, Mr Vishwanath said he had not been approached by the JD(S). But taking on the Congress, he claimed it was out to get him. “I am deeply hurt by the developments in the Congress of late. I have been in the party for the past 40 years. Although I am repeatedly hurt, no one has tried to console me. CM Siddaramaiah recently visited Dr H C Mahadevappa when he was sick and also Mr Ambareesh. But although I was unwell and hospitalised in Coimbatore for many months, he did not even call to inquire about my health,” he lamented, adding that he was relying on his friends and well-wishers for advice.


“Nobody bothers about who quits the Congress as their positions are firm. My relationship with it is like the umbilical cord that joins mother and child. Whether I am in the Congress or not, I can say confidently that it is not possible to create a Congress-mukth Karnataka or a Congress-mukth India,” Mr Vishwanath declared.