New Delhi: In a boost to the BJP in Karnataka ahead of 2024 Lok Sabha polls, Janata Dal (Secular) has decided to ally with the party following a meeting of its leader H D Kumaraswamy with Home Minister Amit Shah and party president J P Nadda.

After the meeting, Nadda said on X, "I am happy that JD(S) has decided to be the part of National Democratic Alliance. We wholeheartedly welcome them in the NDA. This will further strengthen NDA and vision of Hon PM Narendra Modi Ji for 'New India, Strong India'."

Shah was present in the meeting.

Headed by former prime minister H D Deve Gowda, the JD(S) has long been a strong third player in the southern state where the Congress and the BJP have been the two main parties. The regional party, however, suffered a sharp decline in the recent assembly polls in the state where the Congress scored a big win, reducing the BJP to a distant third.

The BJP, which heads the NDA, believes an alliance with the JD(S) will ensure its domination in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls as the regional party enjoys considerable influence in south Karnataka where the saffron party has traditionally been weak. Both parties will reportedly contest in the Lok Sabha elections as an alliance. Karnataka has 28 Lok Sabha seats.

Meanwhile, the Kerala unit rejected the JDS national leadership’s decision to join the NDA. The Kerala component will not go with the NDA, Mathew T Thomas said. He also informed that a state committee has been called next month to make a decision about this. JDS in Kerala is currently a part of the LDF. 

(Inputs from PTI )