Lok Sabha 2019: Actor Prakash Raj to contest as independent from Bengaluru Central

Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], Jan 18 (ANI): Actor-turned politician Prakash Raj on Friday said he will not join any political party and will contest the upcoming Lok Sabha polls from Bengaluru Central on his own.
"I am going to contest independently. An MP is a statesman, he is not a corporate. You need to have an MP who can work for the constituency. Nowadays, every parliamentarian is being sucked into some political party and are not raising questions for upliftment of the people," Raj told reporters here.
He also said "All are thieves. They decide people by caste and money. That's why I don't want to join anybody."
It is believed that winning the Bengaluru Central seat, which has been held by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will be an uphill task for the 53-year-old actor.
The south Indian actor was not upbeat about the prospects of a single political party gaining power with a majority in the upcoming Assembly elections.
"I think India is moving towards another decade where we will not have single political parties. Every regional party is trying to stake its claim I think we are in denial if you say that one political party will do everything for us," Raj said.
He said," We have been disillusioned by one single party which can rule throughout the country. We all are in denial mode that one large party will come to power."
The actor pointed out that the country required diversity in thought and various leaders need to come together to ensure an multidimensional approach to find solutions for the country.
The popular actor termed the BJP as "shameless" and blamed it for creating a "tamasha" over the MLA poaching issue in the state.
"BJP is shameless. They are not in power and are pulling down the government's legs. People are calling this a tamasha," the actor said.
In a veiled attack on the BJP, Raj said "the politics of Ram Mandir is being played from inside the air-conditioned rooms of Delhi and Lucknow."
"Look at the streets of Ayodhya and see how people are living there. What kind of Ram Rajya they want to bring in?" he asked. (ANI)