BJP's Koppal googly

After the Koppal Assembly by-election defeat by a hefty margin, both the Congress and the JD(S) in Karnataka have reasons to be seriously worried.

The by-election – a record 20th in the state in a span of 40 months since the BJP came to power in 2008 – was held in the backdrop of the ruling BJP’s image taking a severe beating over the last two months. The BJP’s mascot, B S Yeddyurappa was forced to resign as chief minister on corruption charges, and one of its ‘pillars,’ former minister Janardhana Reddy is in jail as the CBI continues to unravel the web of his wealth from illegal mining.

And yet, the voters of Koppal preferred to return BJP’s Karadi Sanganna, a defector who left JD(S) after getting elected on that party’s ticket in 2008 -- by a bigger margin than last time, sending the Congress and the JD(S) into a tizzy. In fact, it is the first time ever that BJP has won from this constituency.

It raises several troubling questions: Has the Anna Hazare movement against corruption made no impact on Karnataka, at least as seen in one constituency? Is Yeddyurappa such an influential and magnetic leader that the people continue to repose faith in his party? Are the other parties so discredited that the voters no longer have any faith in them?

With the general elections to the Karnataka Assembly another 20 months away, it is too early to read too much into the Koppal result. The ruling parties generally have an upper hand in by-elections as the voters look for short-term benefits, but it is equally clear that the BJP’s roots now run so deep in the state that it cannot easily be dislodged.

Karadi Sanganna, a veteran legislator, is a popular figure in the constituency and his victory is more a personal triumph, of course, aided and abetted by the ruling dispensation’s promise of ‘development’ which has long been denied to the people.
 
After all, when it comes to corruption, there is little or no difference between the BJP, the Congress and the JD(S). The Congress leaders cannot talk about only BJP’s corruption when their own ‘stalwarts’ at the national level are neck-deep in trouble over 2G and other mega scams. Worse, it cannot even talk about illegal mining, considering its government in Goa is deeply immersed in it. And if Yeddyurappa was campaigning in Koppal perilously hovering between jail and bail over several cases of corruption, nepotism and favouritism, so was state JD(S) president H D Kumaraswamy. The choice before the people was between tweedledum and tweedledee!

Going by the hectic schedule that both Yeddyurappa and Kumaraswamy endured in Koppal, there is obviously not much wrong with them and the courts which granted them bail on health grounds, should take a serious re-look at their applications. There cannot be different yardsticks just because they are political leaders or happen to be former chief ministers.

Huge relief

Barely two months in office, the Koppal victory has come as a huge relief to the new chief minister, Sadananda Gowda. When Yeddyurappa wanted to ‘lead’ the party’s campaign, there was much tension in the BJP and the national president Nitin Gadkari had to intervene and convince the leaders to campaign jointly. Yeddyurappa and his followers are ready to take the credit for Sanganna’s victory, but had the BJP lost, they would have branded Sadananda Gowda as a ‘weak’ chief minister and projected Yeddyurappa as indispensable for the party.

It’s time for Sadananda Gowda to concentrate on consolidating his position and giving a good administration. Gowda should fill up the vacancies in his cabinet with competent persons. With the Reddy brothers facing the CBI heat and Yeddyurappa kept busy with court cases, he should begin to stamp his authority and instill in his colleagues’ minds that he is the boss and nobody’s puppet.

Gowda has already made some good impression with his outspokenness and low-key style of functioning. People have noticed that he is trying to motivate his ministers and officials to respond to people’s problems and meet deadlines. He is ‘well-grounded’, as he travels by train to the districts and meets people and has hardly used the helicopter.

And he does not put too much trust in gods to save his chair, not as much as his predecessor, at least!

But he has a lot more to do. The administration has become totally corrupt and insensitive to the people’s needs. Apart from identifying and punishing those who colluded with the ‘Reddy kingdom’ in the loot of the state’s resources, Karnataka should follow the model of Delhi government’s ‘citizen’s charter’ in fixing the time limit for the babus to deliver on public services and imposing a fine on those who fail to do so. It will help in reducing corruption and harassment to the common people in getting what they are entitled to.

Inflation and the escalating cost of living is a major issue for the people, and the Centre’s policy of resorting to frequent increases in fuel prices has only made the matters worse.

There has been a long standing demand that the state should reduce its various taxes including sales tax on petroleum products -- one of the highest in the country -- so that the people get some relief from the increasing burden. Yeddyurappa’s government stubbornly refused to reduce the taxes, when many other states did so and continue to.

Here, Sadananda Gowda has an opportunity to earn the people’s goodwill by taking the step which is overdue.
Talking of goodwill, the Koppal result has demonstrated that the BJP is certainly ahead of the other parties, and if Sadananda Gowda is able to use the 20 months ahead of him to give a people-friendly administration, who knows, he may be able to extend his ‘temporary lease’ beyond 2013!