Bengaluru (The Hindu): In the home ground of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, the stage seems to be set for a BJP-JD(S) alliance.

The latter, which has bagged 18 seats in the 49-member Mysuru Zilla Panchayat, is planning to align with the BJP to capture power in the local body. JD(S) leader and Chamundeshwari Assembly constituency MLA G.T. Deve Gowda told presspersons on Wednesday that the party has already entered into an understanding with the BJP to take control of Mysuru City Corporation. “We will have a similar tie-up on the Mysuru Zilla Panchayat,” Mr. Gowda said.

The JD(S) plans to team up with the BJP, which has eight members in the zilla panchayat. The JD(S)-BJP combine of 26 members is expected to help them cross the midway mark of 25.

The Congress won 22 seats in the elections, making it a hung ZP. Though formal talks between the two parties on joining hands had not yet taken place, Mr. Gowda said he was aware that the BJP was also of the view that the two parties should come together. When his attention was drawn to the tie-up with the Congress in Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), Mr. Gowda said the JD(S) was averse to joining hands with the ruling party in Mysuru. He also dismissed the possibility of Congress splitting the JD(S) or the BJP to secure the support of three members needed for it to get a majority. The JD(S) and BJP had come together to share power when the Mysuru Zilla Panchayat had thrown up a hung verdict after the 2010 polls. While JD(S) member Suneetha Veerappa Gowda became the president, BJP member Shivaramu was chosen vice-president. However, the Congress managed to take control of the zilla panchayat in September 2013 by luring two BJP members and one Independent. Later, in 2014 also, the Congress retained power by luring JD(S) members.