BJP bribed voters to win Legislative Council polls, alleges expelled BJP leader Raghupathi Bhat

A three-time BJP MLA from Udupi, the party replaced Bhat with Yashpal Suvarna in the 2023 state elections. That time, Bhat had expressed his confidence in the party and said he would continue to work for it. However, he decided to contest the South West Graduates Legislative Council seat as an Independent after he was again snubbed by the BJP, leading to his expulsion from the party.

After his ouster from the party, Aliya Assadi, a Muslim student who had to walk out of a pre-university exam centre two years ago for not removing her hijab, took a jibe at Bhat.

The girl student wrote on X, “Sixty days before the annual exams, I was expelled from college just for wearing a hijab, and your party (BJP) celebrated it as a great achievement. But today, I witnessed the moment when your party expelled you, while still in my hijab. Back then, I was an expelled student and you had a position in the party. Today, I am a law student and you are an expelled person (sic).”

Reacting to her statement, Bhat said, “The uniform rule was prevailing even before I became an MLA. So, I never saw it from a religious lens. I wish the best for her academic life.”

Former BJP MP Pratap Simha, who did not get the party ticket to contest from the Mysuru-Kodagu Lok Sabha constituency this time, has come out in support of Bhat.

“MLA Raghupathi Bhat, who fought against the Jihadi mentality to wear Burqa in college, did not get an MLA ticket. He failed to get an MLC ticket either. Also, he has been expelled from the party. It is very unfortunate to see Hindutva leaders being ridiculed by Aliya Assadi,” Simha said on X before deleting the post.

Bhat also received support from other rebel BJP leaders like former minister K S Eshwarappa.

The results of the Legislative Council polls will be out on June 6.