No tiff over campaign: Gadkari tells CM, BSY

Gadkari had summoned Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda, party State president K S Eshwarappa and former chief minister B S Yeddyurappa to his home district, Nagpur, on Tuesday, to discuss among other things the fallout of the arrest of Janardhana Reddy by the CBI.

While Gowda and Yeddyurappa kept their appointment with Gadkari in Nagpur, Eshwarappa stayed away, stating he was not well. BJP General Secretary and the party’s Karnataka incharge Dharmendra Pradhan accompanied them. At the meeting, which lasted nearly three hours, Gadkari gave a patient hearing to the two leaders.

Gadkari told the leaders that the party’s Central leadership was keeping a close watch on the fallout of Reddy’s arrest and would advice the State unit on a regular basis. He is also learnt to have told the leaders that he would personally try to convince former minister B Sriramulu to withdraw his resignation from the post of MLA.

The Reddy brothers control over 10 party legislators and if the party ditches them, it could spell trouble for the party, it was felt. At the same time, Gadkari is understood to have told them that a fight for oneupmanship should not break out in the party on who should lead the election campaign for the Koppal Assembly bypoll. The party should face the bypoll unitedly, Gadkari reportedly told the State leaders.

Gadkari’s summons to the State BJP top brass comes at a time when the party has been facing one crisis after another. Just a month ago, the Lokayukta report on illegal mining raised enough dust to dislodge the party’s first chief minister is south India, Yeddyurappa. At a time when Chief Minister Sadananda Gowda was settling down in his post, came the demand from the Yeddyurappa camp that their leader should lead the campaign for the September 26 bypoll.