Bengaluru: The ticket denial to Vijayendra in Varuna Assembly Constituency and Janardhan Reddy campaigning freely in support of family members and friends has caused more embarrassment to Bharatiya Janata party (BJP), there by turning them into liabilities than assets in a short time.
Vijayendra’s withdrawal from Varuna Assembly Constituency has given a shot in the arm for Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s son and Congress candidate Dr. Yatindra, who is now engaging in drumming up more support than ever before. The campaign managers’ enthusiasm in BJP camp is dampened by the turn of events as most supporters of Vijayendra are rebelling against the party and the rest deserting the party. Few have decided to use the option of NOTA to convey their displeasure to party bosses, while others are openly rebelling against official candidate Thotadappa Basavaraju .
Most supporters of Vijayendra hold Union Minister Ananth Kumar and RSS strongman Santhosh responsible for the current political scenario despite Vijayendra’s father and state BJP chief issuing repeated clarifications on the issue. The reason for ticket denial is to contain BSY’s hold on the party and ensure he too toes the party line, say few party insiders. The ticket denial has not only split the BJP ranks but also divided dominant Lingayat support base vertically in the region.
Janata Dal (Secular) candidate Abhishek caught in the crossfire is clueless about the future course of action and is unable to improve his prospects in the electoral field. With barely a fortnight left for the polls, its advantage for Dr. Yatindra in Varuna now!
Though Janardhan Reddy is banned from entering Bellari district due to bail terms, he has been very active in campaigning for selected party candidates with the sole intention of bringing down the present Congress regime and more importantly ensure his bête-noire CM Siddaramaiah’s downfall. Congress president Rahul Gandhi on a 2-day electioneering tour of the state, asked on April 26, “Modi, who talks about fighting corruption, must explain to the people why he is supporting the corrupt Reddy brothers by giving ticket to contest in the state assembly polls.” Most Congress leaders in the state have been singing the same chorus to corner BJP in the political battle field thereby not allowing the illegal mining dust settle down.
Reddy has been actively campaigning for Sriramulu in Badami and is using his clout to garner support to his two other brothers in the electoral arena and relative Lallesh Reddy, BJP candidate from BTM Layout constituency in the capital. He is also trying to quell the rebellion in Molakalmuru Assembly segment by trying to lure supporters of S Thippeswamy, incumbent MLA of BJP who has openly revolted against Sriramulu.
“When Congress demanded BJP to clear its stand on Janardhan Reddy’s free run during campaigning, state BJP In-charge Javadekar quickly responded by stating , “He is no more a star campaigner for the party. He is campaigning in his personal capacity and BJP has nothing to do with it.”
Contradicting his statement, state BJP chief B S Yeddyurappa said, “Janaradhan Reddy had not been given the party ticket nor had he sought it. But with his help, party aims to win 10-15 seats in North -Karnataka region”, thereby throwing his weight behind the mining baron.
However, in a latest development BJP National President Amit Shah is understood to have told Janaradhan Reddy to stay away from campaigning and maintain a low key.
Frequent flip-flops in the statements of senior BJP leaders are creating lot of doubts in the minds of party men and confusion in party ranks thereby damaging the winning prospects of certain official candidates, say party insiders.
Have Vijayendra and Janradhan Reddy turned into liabilities for BJP for different reasons in quick time, only time will tell.
