Why Karnataka looks set for mid-term polls
Is Karnataka headed for mid-term polls? If the grapevine in the corridors of power in Vidhana Soudha, Bengaluru, is to be believed then mid-term polls, by year-end or early 2020, seem to be an emerging option for the BJP to return to power with full majority.
Growing resentment within the ruling BJP on the allocation of ministerial portfolios and the appointment of three deputy chief ministers; denial of Cabinet berths to a few important leaders and the uncertainty over the fate of 14 MLAs from Congress and the Janata Dal (Secular), whose resignations paved the way for the BJP to grab power, are creating an unstable political environment.
Consequently, many leaders in the party think that the BJP should seek a fresh mandate and secure an absolute majority. Aware of this development, the Opposition — the Congress and the JD(S) — is predicting a premature end to the BJP government.
Surprisingly, neither chief minister BS Yediyurappa nor any prominent BJP leader is countering the Opposition. In fact, both the Congress and the JD(S) have already commenced preparations for mid-term polls.
At a recent political rally, former CM Siddaramaiah said that mid-term polls were imminent in Karnataka considering the developments.
It is widely known within the BJP that Yediyurappa is unhappy with the way the party handled the appointment of the council of ministers. By empowering youngsters and sidelining seniors, the BJP has made it clear that it prefers fresh blood over the old order. The party’s decision to appoint three deputy chief ministers, one of them (Laxman Savadi), who lost the 2018 Assembly polls, has created severe unrest in the BJP.
Yediyurappa seems to have accepted the fact that this is his last term as chief minister. He will have to hand over the baton sooner or later. The disappointment is visible on his face. The biggest opposition to mid-term polls in the BJP is from first-time MLAs, who feel let down. Many of them say that it will not be easy for the BJP to convince its MLAs to face a fresh election in six months.
The foremost challenge, according to first-time BJP MLAs is placing ‘issues’ before the voters. “We cannot go to the people asking them for full majority as we have don’t have sufficient numbers in the Assembly. Already, voters in my constituency are saying they elected me not to show my helplessness,” a first-time BJP MLA from south Karnataka admitted.
Some BJP MLAs even accept that work in their constituencies was easily getting approved during the previous Congress-JD(S) coalition government. But that is not the case with their own BJP government.
(Courtesy of Mail Today)