11-22-2007, 12:34 PM
From UP to Karnataka
By Ajay Bose
After being ditched by Mayawati a decade ago, the BJP has once again come to grief over a rotational arrangement to share power with regional ally. However, the collapse of the first BJP Government in the South is far more damaging for the party
For the second consecutive time, the BJP has come to grief over a rotational arrangement to share power with a regional ally in a State Government. Almost exactly a decade ago, the BSP led by the mercurial Mayawati had trampled upon the deal with the BJP that made her Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh for an agreed six month term, pulling the plug soon after the turn came for Mr Kalyan Singh to replace her at the helm of government. In an eerie replay 10 years after, the BJP has egg on its face, botching up once again the rotational experiment -- this time in Karnataka -- that now must be regarded by the party as the worst ever coalitional model.
Yet, the farcical collapse of the first BJP Government in the South within a week of its birth is in many ways far more damaging than the setback the party had received in Uttar Pradesh a decade ago. In fact, Mr Kalyan Singh, a political street fighter, had managed to turn the tables on the BSP, breaking it along with other parties to cling on to power even after Ms Mayawati's dramatic withdrawal of support. In the process, he had got his hands dirty and his party's reputation muddy; and, perhaps sowed the seeds of the BJP's ultimate decline in Uttar Pradesh.
Nevertheless, since it was the BJP that seemed the immediate winner, the mess that the party had made of the rotational deal with the BSP was relegated to the background. Moreover, the ascent of the BJP to power in New Delhi soon after also helped to quickly heal the wounds of the fiasco in Lucknow. The fact that Mr Atal Bihari Vajpayee managed to lead a coalition Government for nearly six years, albeit with some initial hiccups, had relegated the disastrous first experiment by the party of coalition by rotation to a distant memory, if not forgotten altogether.
Much to the discomfiture of the BJP, unlike the first time, the second failure of rotating power with an ally has no saving grace whatsoever. For one thing the party's chief ministerial aspirant, Mr BS Yeddyurappa, completely lacked Mr Kalyan Singh's street fighting abilities and quite overwhelmed by a veteran political rogue like Mr HD Deve Gowda. He failed to put even a semblance of a fight let alone turn the tables on his tormentors.
Nothing better illustrates the farce played out in Karnataka than Mr Yeddyurappa's desperate attempt to change his fortunes by dropping the letter 'i' in his name on astrological advice. This appears to be the only move he made to stay in power and was apparently inspired by another political loser, his predecessor Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy, Mr Deve Gowda's son, who recently added an extra 'a' to his name in similar hope of intervention by the stars. Indeed the two must rank as the most inept pair of political rivals and their tussle for supremacy the most ludicrous that this country has ever seen.
The most galling aspect of the BJP's denouement in Karnataka is that the party, apart from failing to capture power, also lost its opportunity of at least capturing the moral high ground by refusing to form the Government when the Janata Dal (S) first started playing political games. Had the party seen through the deal being offered by its ally and firmly turned its back on forming a Government in such dubious circumstances, it could have claimed a sympathy vote with more credibility in the next election.
But by accepting the Chief Minister's post and go through the formalities of a swearing in ceremony for Cabinet Ministers even as Mr Deve Gowda continued to play games and then cry foul when things went wrong is unlikely to elicit much support for the BJP.
It will also be unfair to lay the blame entirely on the local party leadership. The Central leadership appeared equally clueless as Mr Yeddyurappa on what to do with a truant ally. There was no attempt whatsoever in planning a clear strategy when things started going wrong and it had become evident that the State unit was clearly unable to cope with the crisis on its own.
Quite apart from the public embarrassment, the collapse of the short-lived BJP Government in Bangalore has larger implications for the party. It has come at time when the party is still recovering from its rout in the summer Assembly election in Uttar Pradesh where its dwindling fortunes is a constant reminder of receding hopes of a political comeback in the next Lok Sabha election. Karnataka remains one of the few promising new frontiers for the BJP and the party desperately needs to put its best foot forward in the State if it is to compensate even partially for the alarming decline in north India.
The Central BJP leadership must also be worried that the debacle in Karnataka is yet another blow to the party's reputation as the leader of a credible coalition alternative to the UPA. Ever since the NDA lost power in the last general election and Mr Vajpayee relegated to semi-retirement, the BJP has been steadily losing its position as the other pole of political power to the Congress. It has already been abandoned by several allies and may lose more in the coming months.
<b>
Much of the current woes of the BJP can be attributed to the absence of a strong and dynamic national leadership. While the appointment of Mr Rajnath Singh as national president may have been a sensible move when the savvy and force of Pramod Mahajan was behind him, it no long seems such a good idea now that the latter is no more. The Uttar Pradesh Thakur leader's essentially provincial nature is becoming increasingly palpable particularly when the party faces crises such as the recent one in Karnataka.
</b>
It is possible that Gujarat may still bring a taste of victory next month to the BJP. But if Mr Narendra Modi remains the only one in the party to display political innovation and dynamism, it is high time the party took some hard decisions. Otherwise, a considerably reduced number in the next Lok Sabha and nothing to show in the State Assemblies across the country as well may soon relegate the BJP to a very marginal role in Indian politics.
By Ajay Bose
After being ditched by Mayawati a decade ago, the BJP has once again come to grief over a rotational arrangement to share power with regional ally. However, the collapse of the first BJP Government in the South is far more damaging for the party
For the second consecutive time, the BJP has come to grief over a rotational arrangement to share power with a regional ally in a State Government. Almost exactly a decade ago, the BSP led by the mercurial Mayawati had trampled upon the deal with the BJP that made her Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh for an agreed six month term, pulling the plug soon after the turn came for Mr Kalyan Singh to replace her at the helm of government. In an eerie replay 10 years after, the BJP has egg on its face, botching up once again the rotational experiment -- this time in Karnataka -- that now must be regarded by the party as the worst ever coalitional model.
Yet, the farcical collapse of the first BJP Government in the South within a week of its birth is in many ways far more damaging than the setback the party had received in Uttar Pradesh a decade ago. In fact, Mr Kalyan Singh, a political street fighter, had managed to turn the tables on the BSP, breaking it along with other parties to cling on to power even after Ms Mayawati's dramatic withdrawal of support. In the process, he had got his hands dirty and his party's reputation muddy; and, perhaps sowed the seeds of the BJP's ultimate decline in Uttar Pradesh.
Nevertheless, since it was the BJP that seemed the immediate winner, the mess that the party had made of the rotational deal with the BSP was relegated to the background. Moreover, the ascent of the BJP to power in New Delhi soon after also helped to quickly heal the wounds of the fiasco in Lucknow. The fact that Mr Atal Bihari Vajpayee managed to lead a coalition Government for nearly six years, albeit with some initial hiccups, had relegated the disastrous first experiment by the party of coalition by rotation to a distant memory, if not forgotten altogether.
Much to the discomfiture of the BJP, unlike the first time, the second failure of rotating power with an ally has no saving grace whatsoever. For one thing the party's chief ministerial aspirant, Mr BS Yeddyurappa, completely lacked Mr Kalyan Singh's street fighting abilities and quite overwhelmed by a veteran political rogue like Mr HD Deve Gowda. He failed to put even a semblance of a fight let alone turn the tables on his tormentors.
Nothing better illustrates the farce played out in Karnataka than Mr Yeddyurappa's desperate attempt to change his fortunes by dropping the letter 'i' in his name on astrological advice. This appears to be the only move he made to stay in power and was apparently inspired by another political loser, his predecessor Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy, Mr Deve Gowda's son, who recently added an extra 'a' to his name in similar hope of intervention by the stars. Indeed the two must rank as the most inept pair of political rivals and their tussle for supremacy the most ludicrous that this country has ever seen.
The most galling aspect of the BJP's denouement in Karnataka is that the party, apart from failing to capture power, also lost its opportunity of at least capturing the moral high ground by refusing to form the Government when the Janata Dal (S) first started playing political games. Had the party seen through the deal being offered by its ally and firmly turned its back on forming a Government in such dubious circumstances, it could have claimed a sympathy vote with more credibility in the next election.
But by accepting the Chief Minister's post and go through the formalities of a swearing in ceremony for Cabinet Ministers even as Mr Deve Gowda continued to play games and then cry foul when things went wrong is unlikely to elicit much support for the BJP.
It will also be unfair to lay the blame entirely on the local party leadership. The Central leadership appeared equally clueless as Mr Yeddyurappa on what to do with a truant ally. There was no attempt whatsoever in planning a clear strategy when things started going wrong and it had become evident that the State unit was clearly unable to cope with the crisis on its own.
Quite apart from the public embarrassment, the collapse of the short-lived BJP Government in Bangalore has larger implications for the party. It has come at time when the party is still recovering from its rout in the summer Assembly election in Uttar Pradesh where its dwindling fortunes is a constant reminder of receding hopes of a political comeback in the next Lok Sabha election. Karnataka remains one of the few promising new frontiers for the BJP and the party desperately needs to put its best foot forward in the State if it is to compensate even partially for the alarming decline in north India.
The Central BJP leadership must also be worried that the debacle in Karnataka is yet another blow to the party's reputation as the leader of a credible coalition alternative to the UPA. Ever since the NDA lost power in the last general election and Mr Vajpayee relegated to semi-retirement, the BJP has been steadily losing its position as the other pole of political power to the Congress. It has already been abandoned by several allies and may lose more in the coming months.
<b>
Much of the current woes of the BJP can be attributed to the absence of a strong and dynamic national leadership. While the appointment of Mr Rajnath Singh as national president may have been a sensible move when the savvy and force of Pramod Mahajan was behind him, it no long seems such a good idea now that the latter is no more. The Uttar Pradesh Thakur leader's essentially provincial nature is becoming increasingly palpable particularly when the party faces crises such as the recent one in Karnataka.
</b>
It is possible that Gujarat may still bring a taste of victory next month to the BJP. But if Mr Narendra Modi remains the only one in the party to display political innovation and dynamism, it is high time the party took some hard decisions. Otherwise, a considerably reduced number in the next Lok Sabha and nothing to show in the State Assemblies across the country as well may soon relegate the BJP to a very marginal role in Indian politics.