A divided opposition helps the BJP

The recent elections to Karnataka’s four Rajya Sabha seats displayed deepening differences between the two opposition parties – Congress and JD(S) – which resulted in the ruling BJP winning one seat due to split of votes. Less than a year before the assembly elections, the breakup between the two parties is being seen as a harbinger of the fight for a “secular vote” in 2023.

Ego clashes between local Congress and JD(S) leaders thwarted senior leaders’ attempts to reach a common ground on the candidate. While the Congress argued that it supported former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda’s election to the Rajya Sabha in 2020, and sought the support of the JD(S) this time, the JD(S) asked the Congress to win one seat each for both the parties. To enable you to support your candidate. Both raised secular issues to kick each other off the field, but neither of them batted an eye. Eventually, the BJP won three seats, and the Congress one. The angry JD(S) then vowed that it would not make any deal with the Congress in future, a party with which it has formed two coalition governments in the past, albeit short-lived.

The Congress, which had fielded a Muslim as the second candidate, found it difficult to withdraw from the fray. His attempt to portray the JD(S) as the BJP’s “B team” did not go away as the regional party did not seek BJP’s support. The JD(S) said the Congress had fielded a Muslim candidate as a “scapegoat”, knowing it would not win the election as the party had only 25 votes after casting ballots for its first candidate, Jairam Ramesh. There were votes. The Congress, in turn, said that the JD(S) chose not to support a minority candidate who was already in the fray.

The JD(S), which claimed to have lost around 25 seats in the 2018 elections for being branded as the BJP’s “B team” by the Congress, is attempting to infiltrate the minority vote bank and appoint CM Ibrahim. has done. State President. The regional party claims to be stronger than expected as only two of its MLAs cross-voted in the Rajya Sabha, against the popular belief that there is widespread discontent in the party. After turning down an alliance with the JD(S), the Congress has sent a clear signal that it wants to consolidate votes in the old Mysore belt where the two parties are traditional rivals.

With these political equations, the Leader of the Opposition, Siddaramaiah; Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee President DK Shivakumar; And JD(S) leader HD Kumaraswamy, all from the old Mysore region, with little time for other regions, could be stuck fighting his battles. This could work well for the BJP, which has been under attack for its lack of focus on development, endless allegations of corruption and divisive politics, as it draws its strength from the Lingayat-dominated northern region and the coastal region. In fact, as Mr. Siddaramaiah and Mr. Kumaraswamy tend to distort leaders of each other’s parties, the BJP seeking to expand its footprint in Old Mysore could benefit there as well.

It will be interesting to see how all this will affect Mr. Siddaramaiah. The JD(S) believed that he was the biggest hurdle for the alliance as the Congress high command supported its candidate. Mr Siddaramaiah, who wrote an open letter to JD(S) legislators to “vote with discretion” for the Congress candidate, is now the JD(S), a party from which he was expelled in 2005. The BJP, too, will launch its attack against him, as he has been its most consistent and outspoken critic. The former chief minister also has opponents within the party, making him quite lonely in the political arena.

sharath.srivatsa@thehindu.co.in