The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : So near, yet so far for BJP in State

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Aug 05, 2005

Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

So near, yet so far for BJP in State

A. Jayaram

Yediyurapppa and his associates showing signs of desperation

BANGALORE: There is growing desperation in a section of the Bharatiya Janata Party leadership in the State to come to power and that too by any means, including "supping with the Congress".

The surprising part of it is that the willingness to join hands with the Janata Dal (Secular) in particular has come from Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly B.S. Yediyurappa. "There is an et tu Yediyurappa" resignation about the willingness he has been expressing in the open since Wednesday.

After the expulsion of A.K. Subbaiah from the party in 1983, it is Mr. Yediyurappa, who has been spearheading the BJP's attacks on the ruling parties, the Congress or the Janata Dal factions.

Always serious

He, like Mr. Subbaiah, has been Opposition leader who does not know how to smile and his fire on the ruling party is ever mixed with ire. He had taken on the then Chief Minister Ramakrishna Hegde during 1985-89 when the BJP had only two MLAs. The party's strength improved to only four during 1985-89.

It is being said that the four-member BJP group in the Assembly was a more effective opposition than the 79-member largest group of today. Political observers attribute it to poor management of the party's human resources in the Legislature.

That the BJP won the largest-ever number of seats despite its lacklustre performance as an opposition even in the last Assembly is attributed to the A.B. Vajpayee factor.

The BJP and the NDA were shining in Karnataka if not in the other States bringing the party a bonanza of 18 out of 28 seats in the Lok Sabha from the State.

Caste factor

There is a view that Mr. Yediyurappa should have been projected as the next chief minister, especially because he is a Lingayat and that caste had turned to the BJP in a big way.

The internal differences in the party came in the way of naming a leader and some insiders blame the party General Secretary H.N. Ananth Kumar for it. Since then the differences between Mr. Yediyurappa and Mr. Ananth Kumar have widened.

Dearth of leaders

The BJP has suffered from the dearth of leaders with a Statewide appeal and even charisma. The latest case was that of the former chief minister S.Bangarappa. It is being stated that he resigned from the Party on being denied the State presidentship.

The party, which admitted him, failed to trust him when it came to the top post.

Waiting forever?

The BJP has long been waiting to come to power and is next only to the Congress in seniority. Its predecessor, the Bharatiya Jan Sangh, began contesting elections in the erstwhile Mysore State in 1952 although it had to wait till 1967 to enter the State Assembly.

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