Bangalore, Aug 14: JD(U) Karnataka unit today expelled its senior leader P G R Sindhia and suspended another leader N Thippanna for alleged anti-party activities, nearly a fortnight after they announced that JD(U) would merge with JD(S).
"On the directive of the party's central committee, Sindhia had been expelled from the party's primary membership for six years and Thippanna suspended for colluding with him", newly appointed state JD(U) convenor Sripathy Rao said.
Rao said Sindhia could have joined JD(S) but "wearing the mask of merger", he had defected from JD(U). Both have been sent notices, he said in a statement here.
Taking a serious note of the merger announcement by Sindhia and Thippanna, JD(U) president and Union Minister Sharad Yadav had dissolved the state unit for not functioning according to the provisions of the party constitution.
Sindhia had however dismissed Yadav's action saying it was "nothing unexpected or unusual" and said they would go ahead with the formal merger with JD(S) at a function here on August 16.

Sindhia is the lone MLA of JD(U), whose almost all legislators and a section of JD(S) had last year formed a new political outfit called All India Janata Dal, later renamed as All India Progressive Janata Dal.
Bureau Report