A New Spring in Karnataka Congress Shoe
Bangalore, Jul 29 (DC): Five days and counting... That the Congress-inspired padayatra from Bengaluru to Bellary refuses to vacate the public mind-space even as the marchers move further and further away from the capital — but ever closer to the August 9 denouement in Bellary — is as riveting as watching the BJP keep the Congress high in the public consciousness.
Playing into their hands by reacting to their every barb, their every taunt is not smart politics! Wouldn’t ignoring them altogether have been a better strategy than the apoplectic fits of anger that seem to seize BJP leaders whenever the Congress is mentioned?
Feint, thrust and cut. Certainly, there’s a newfound confidence in the ranks of the opposition Congress. Less than a month ago they were rebels without a cause, in complete disarray, accused of infighting, of having more generals than footsoldiers, of attempting to build bridges with a Janata Dal (S), that not surprisingly, has poured cold water on the Bellary campaign! Unlike the assembly sit-in which saw enthusiastic JD(S) participation, a padayatra perhaps, can have only one Pied Piper.
With the issue of illegal mining, the down and out Congress may have finally found a cause that unites them. It’s the glue that ties die-hard old Congressmen to “new” leaders like KPCC chief R.V. Deshpande and the clear star on the horizon, the fiery Siddaramaiah. Former JD(S) men.
Whether the walkathon will, achieve its primary aim — tainting the saffronistas as no different from the rest of the political class, remove the powerful Reddy triumvirate from their ministerial positions and with that the ability of the greenbacks to grease the BJP’s political wheel — is another matter altogether.
Fact is, in the space of a few extraordinary weeks, the rebirth of a lacklustre political party has been matched by the remarkable makeover of one man who has simply grown in stature. Siddaramaiah, the Kuruba. Blisters on his newly shod feet notwithstanding, (did someone forget to tell him and the others, one has to break in a shoe before wearing it for a marathon) the manner in which this backward class leader has shed his diffidence and taken the lead presages the battles to come.
Clearly, he has big shoes to fill. The charismatic Devaraj Urs, S. Bangarappa to name a few. Not since the early nineties has the Congress had a Backward Class leader to call their own. Ceding space to a Janata Dal which drew on its 18 per cent Vokkaliga vote share, and the BJP which tapped into its loyal 23 per cent Lingayat vote bank, the Congress may have just found the man who can consolidate their scattered, once loyal BC vote.
Within the ruling BJP, the clamour, albeit muted, against the once unassailable Reddys is growing. The chief minister’s answer has been to pull the shutters down on the transport and export of iron ore. But is that — or even a probe — nearly enough? How long can he afford to play Mr Nice Guy?
The Yatra so far...