Even As Karnataka BJP Leaders Spar With Kumaraswamy, Devegowda Joins Amit Shah At Mandya Event

Union Home and Cooperative Minister Amit Shah inaugurated a mega milk diary in Mandya, Karnataka, today and he did so in the presence of Janata Dal (Secular) (JD(S)) stalwart and former PM H D Devegowda.

The Karnataka assembly goes for elections in the first half of 2023. While this visit of Shah is said to mark the beginning of the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) electoral campaign in the old Mysore region, the presence of JD(S) patriarch Devegowda has given rise to murmurs of a possible coalition between the two parties.

Devegowda's presence gains significance since the event took place in the Old-Mysuru region, which is generally regarded as the stronghold of the JD(S).

The former prime minister's presence can also be seen as part of a damage-control exercise by the state unit of the BJP. Devegowda's absence at the unveiling of the statue of Kempegowda by PM Modi, in Bengaluru on 11 November, had been turned into political spectacle. King Kempegowda, regarded as the founder of Bengaluru, is also celebrated as a Vokkaliga icon.

In the days leading upto the event, political circles in the state were also abuzz with reports of a tug-of-war between senior BJP leaders R Ashok and Dr CN Ashwath Narayan. Both happen to belong to the Vokkaliga community.

The weeks preceding the unveiling of Kempegowda's statue also saw a yatra being taken out to collect soil from all districts of Karnataka, to be eventually deposited at the site of the statue. But right from the beginning of that yatra, former CM H D Kumaraswamy had criticised it saying the 'chariot' had no Vokkaliga leader or seer’s picture on it.

On the occasion of the 11 November event, Kumaraswamy once again raised a cry saying the BJP had insulted H D Devegowda and Kannadigas by not inviting the former to the event.

Responding to the charge, Ashwath Narayan said that CM Basavaraj Bommai had personally invited Siddaramaiah, H D Kumaraswamy and S M Krishna. He had stressed that “all political leaders have great respect for Deve Gowda” and that he had also sought the senior Gowda’s presence for the holy soil collection campaign.

The handling of this issue however had said to have left the central BJP leadership not greatly pleased.

Recently one also saw PM Modi give the octogenarian Devegowda an audience where he is said to have ‘discussed issues concerning the development of Karnataka’. The camaraderie in the pictures was for all to see as PM Modi held Devegowda’s hand and smiled.

Soon after, JD(S) state President C M Ibrahim minced no words in saying that Devegowda is a bigger leader than PM Modi. ‘What Modi is in Gujarat, Devegowda is in Karnataka. He is a son of the soil’, he had emphasized.

And thus, as Shah landed in Mandya today, the BJP this time around took care to have both Devegowda as well as the pontiff of Adi Chunchanagiri math, Sri Nirmalananda Swamiji.

Swamiji has been leading the community members in their demands for reservation and had recently warned the ‘administrators from causing any hurt to the Vokkaligas‘, while highlighting that a lot of decisions to that effect had been taken in recent times.

Today, however, both the influential forces of the Vokkaliga community were seen speaking highly of the event and the effort made to strengthen the cooperative sector.

The contest for votes although, has only begun. Narayan, as the district-in-charge of Ramanagara, has been seen waging a war of words with both the Vokkaliga strongheads, HDK and the DK brothers of the Congress.

Two days ago too, Narayan spoke of the possibility of a Rama Mandir on the lines of the one at Ayodhya being built at Ramanagara and that UP CM Yogi Adityanath would be visiting the state for inspecting the site for the same soon.

Kumaraswamy strongly reacted to this saying that Karnataka is not so bankrupt that they need to bring the UP CM. “I have the strength to construct the temple on my own“ said HDK. He also added that he would get the heads of the Vokkaliga community and the Suttur seer for laying of foundation of the temple.