Bengaluru: BJP’s national vice president, former Karnataka chief minister and sitting member of Lok Sabha from Shivamogga, B S Yeddyurappa, has been persistently announcing his keenness to stay in state politics rather than remain at the national level without any importance.
He has been touring around the state for quite some time to strengthen the party. However, surprisingly, the state-level leaders have not reacted to his statements at all. It is no secret that caste politics is playing a big role.
As Yeddyurappa belongs to the powerful and influrential Lingayat community, his vote-catching potential is needed by the party. But when it comes to the next incumbent of the state party president, there are other aspiring leaders of other communities.
Eshwarappa, belonging to the Kuruba community, R Ashoka from the Vokkaliga community – both former deputy chief ministers – and former chief minister Jagadish Shettar, who is also a Lingayat, have their own ambitions and future plans of action. The tenure of the present president, Pralhad Joshi, is drawing to a close soon.
In private they are said to be feeling uneasy about Yeddyurappa’s loud pronouncements. However, he recently got a shot in the arm when courts stayed enquiries against him. Even prime minister Modi all this while kept BSY at an arm’s length because of charges against him.
But after he was cleared, Modi is said to have specially patted his back in the Parliament House some time ago, when they met each other. This is an indication of latter’s growing clout, it is said.
As if to support this theory and in contrast to the state leader’s stand, Union minister of Law and former chief minister D V Sadananda Gowda said here on Friday that Yeddyurappa had all the eligibility to lead the party in the state. He complimented BSY for having led the party to power in the past. Having managed several posts in different capacities, he was the most suitable one to take the helm, he said.
How the other party leaders will take this is not known. For that matter, it was DVS himself who had said that when Yeddyurappa had left the BJP about three years ago, it was kind of a good riddance and that the ‘dirt’ was gone. It is a different matter if everyone had to eat his words since the party later desperately wanted BSY back to win the Lok Sabha elections.
DVS further said, nevertheless, who would ultimately become the president of the state party would be decided by the high command.
From the archives:
Dear readers, ಕಳ್ಳನ ಹೆಜ್ಜೆ ಕಳ್ಳನೇ ಬಲ್ಲ.(A thief knows a thief as a wolf knows a wolf) After the High Court of Karnataka set aside the prosecution sanction given by HR Bharadwaj in connection with alleged de-notification of land in and around Bengaluru Major relief to former CM of Karnataka, B S Yeddyurappa whose chances are emboldened for the CM post. In the last assembly election he has floated his own party and dented the chances of BJP. Due to the fall of his popularity,for his political survival he quickly mended are remarried his corrupt party with BJP before 2014 Lok… Read more »
And, that’s how state BJP wrote its own obituary for the second time!!