Asianet NewsableAsianet Newsable

As KSE and BSY squabble, Karnataka BJP fractures further

  • Amidst a background of feuding, the BJP's core committee meeting was a fiery affair.
  • The meeting witnessed heated arguments and leaders vented their anger against Yeddyurappa 
As KSE and BSY squabble Karnataka BJP fractures further

 

The simmering difference between state BJP President BS Yeddyurappa (BSY) and former deputy chief minister KS Eshwarappa (KSE) is widening by the day. And the battle is getting quite nasty. For example, when the two leaders came face-to-face yesterday with each other in an elevator during the core committee meeting at the BJP party office in Bengaluru, they refused even to exchange pleasantries.

 

The meeting was the first of the state BJP core committee ever since Yeddyurappa was made the state party president. Several factions in the party are unhappy with the choice of BSY, since he had broken away from the BJP in a huff in 2012 and formed the KJP, only to rejoin after both parties lost the state elections.

 

The most vocal among these detractors has been KS Eshwarappa. Sources say KSE, who is currently on the second rung behind Yeddyurappa, is looking to catapult himself above BSY by becoming Karnataka's numero uno Kuraba leader.

 

Kuraba is a shepherding caste. Currently, chief minister Siddaramaiah of the Congress is the largest Kuraba leader in the state, but sources say that KSE believes the death of the CM's son, Rakesh Siddaramaiah, has weakened CM. KSE hopes to take his place.

 

"There is a feeling that after the death of Rakesh, the CM's son, Siddaramaiah may loose his charm among voters. And this is where Eshwarappa wants to play his political cards, to show his strength to the BJP high command and send them a message that he cannot be ignored," a BJP leader close to Eshwarappa told Asianet Newsable.

 

In the caste-ridden politics of Karnataka, such calculations have significant weight. BSY himself has benefited from being a major leader among the Lingayat caste.

 

So amidst this background of feuding, the core committee meeting was a fiery affair.

 

The meeting witnessed heated arguments and leaders expressed their anger against the list of office bearers prepared by Yeddyurappa in his presence.

 

As if the ardent exchanges in the meeting were not enough of a sign of the factional divide, the core committee has almost given a green signal for the launch of the KS Eshwarappa-backed Sangolli Rayanna Brigade, which hopes to organise a Hinda convention for backwards and minority groups.

 

This decision has come as a major setback to BSY, who has been opposing the convention.

 

Yesterday, in an official statement, the BJP party spokesperson, believing to be speaking for BSY, even stated that such conventions should be organised by the BJP as a party, and not in any individual capacity.

 

That suggestion seems to have been ignored.

 

Former state president Prahlad Joshi and other leaders showed their support to establish the Sangolli Rayanna Brigade under the leadership of KS Eshwarappa.

 

“Sangolli Rayanna Brigade is a team like Namo Brigade and Yuva Brigade, which work for the strengthening of the party,” the leaders said in its defence.

 

Reacting to this, Yeddyurappa said, “These brigades should not be used to create indifference and lead to infighting in the party.”

 

Interestingly, BSY has his own fan group - named the 'BSY Brigade', but there have been no updates on that as of now.

 

The other decisions by the core committee also seem to be mostly against BSY. Some of them were:

 

•    To include names of other leaders left out from the office bearers list

•    To hold a core committee meeting once a month

•    To form Caste-based groups to strengthen party

•    An agreement that all the significant decisions will be taken at the core committee meeting

 

While the cold war between Yeddyurappa and Eshwarappa seems to have just gotten much hotter, for the BJP party, Karnataka continues to remain an ever-fracturing battleground.

Follow Us:
Download App:
  • android
  • ios