By M.K. Ashoka
Bengaluru, Jun 11 (IANS): Even after the drubbing in the Assembly elections and losing its base in entire south India ahead of the Lok Sabha polls in 2024, the Karnataka BJP unit still remains a divided house.
The party leadership is struggling to foster unity and the spirit of fighting against the odds among the cadre. The saffron party that once showed all the signs of emerging as a strong force in the region and making inroads into the south Indian states, has lost miserably and is waiting for a momentum to carry it forward.
It is almost a month since the results were declared on May 14 and the BJP is still to appoint the Leader of the Opposition in the legislative assembly and the council. Former chief minister and BJP MP from Bengaluru North D.V. Sadananda Gowda and national general secretary C.T. Ravi's statements have proved to be a further setback for the party.
C. T. Ravi who faced defeat against his former right-hand man H.D. Thammaiah, pitted against him as the Congress candidate in Chikkamagalur constituency, stated that there is adjustment politics within the BJP and the party was defeated for this reason in the assembly polls.
"We have lost power because of our mistakes. The leaders have compromised and because of these few, the party lost power. I won't name the leaders, but adjustment politics exists and it has resulted in the defeat of the party," he stated.
Sources in the party maintained that C.T. Ravi's outbursts were aimed at former CM B.S. Yediyurappa and his son B.Y. Vijayendra.
The statements by former CM D.V. Sadananda Gowda further demoralized the party cadres and showed that all is not well within the party. He claimed that 13 MPs have approached him over being maligned and the party high command's silence on the matter is intriguing.
Sadananda Gowda stated that there is an attempt to malign 13 MPs among the total 25 as useless. A systematic attempt has been made to bring down the morale of senior parliamentarians. The state as well as national leaders must intervene and clear the confusion at this stage, he demanded.
There is still a year's time for the Lok Sabha elections. At this juncture, MPs are targeted and maligned. "I don't know who is behind this. Rumours are being spread that 13 MPs have not carried out any development in their constituencies and some have fallen sick and won't be given tickets," he alleged.
Sadananda Gowda advised introspection over the defeat.
The BJP held a meeting of its legislators and defeated candidates recently. These candidates have questioned the decision of the party to allot them tickets very late and sending wrong signals to the people of the state. However, the party has postponed the scheduled core committee meeting. Karnataka in-charge Arun Singh has taken the opinions of various leaders and the party is looking towards the high command.
On the other hand, the Congress is making giant strides in consolidating its support in the state. As promised the grand old party is implementing the first guarantee scheme of free bus travel for women. There is a festive mood in the Congress as the party has directed the districts in-charge ministers to celebrate the inauguration of all the five guarantee schemes with much fervour.
The party has filled the full quota of the cabinet and has already started preparations for the significant Bengaluru civic polls and the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. The Congress is targeting and questioning the ideology of the BJP and the RSS. The high command is ensuring harmony between CM Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM D.K. Shivakumar. The combination of the duo is looking dangerous for the BJP.
Sources in the BJP said that the party is not showing any seriousness in trying to understand why 54 sitting MLAs, including ministers, lost the elections. The experiment of issuing tickets to 72 new faces has fallen flat. More than 40 candidates lost their deposits in the elections. The leaders are trying to put up a brave front by talking about the percentage of votes.