Knives out for Yeddyurappa at rally led by Eshwarappa

A BJP faction led by K S Eshwarappa on Thursday defied party president B S Yeddyurappa and set a May 10 deadline for him to review party appointments.

The faction met at Palace Grounds on Wednesday. Eshwarappa, former deputy chief minister, turned up, despite a party directive against the rally. He launched a no-holds-barred tirade against Yeddyurappa, saying his style of functioning was not acceptable.

Two party vice presidents, M B Bhanuprakash and Nirmal Kumar Surana, shared the dais with Eshwarappa.

The group said Yeddyurappa was taking unilateral decisions and appointing office-bearers and district presidents, denting the image of the party and bringing down the morale of the party workers.

“You (Yeddyurappa) are betraying the party by taking unilateral decisions. But you issue a warning to us,” Eshwarappa thundered.

Soon after the event, legislators in the Yeddyurappa camp sought Eshwarappa’s expulsion from the party.

Earlier in the day, Yeddyurappa had said B L Santhosh, BJP National Joint General Secretary (Organisation), had masterminded the rift in the party. At the convention, Eshwarappa said nothing conciliatory. “If you think you can do anything and get away with it, you are mistaken,” Eshwarappa said, throwing an open challenge to Yeddyurappa.

When hostilities had broken out, Amit Shah, the party’s national president, had suggested a committee comprising Yeddyurappa, Eshwarappa and two RSS functionaries deputed to the BJP (B L Santhosh and Arun Kumar) to address all internal problems. Eshwarappa said no meeting of the committee had been convened.

“Show-cause notices are being issued to party loyalists. We cannot keep quiet any more. Yeddyurappa is misusing Shah’s name to threaten us,” he said. Former minister Sogadu Shivanna said senior party workers, who had been imprisoned during Emergency, were being sidelined.