Speculations over some BJP legislators joining the Congress party ahead of the crucial Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) and the Lok Sabha polls have certainly jolted the saffron party, which is still smarting from the shocking defeat in the May 10 Assembly elections that reduced it to mere 66 seats.
"Operation Hasta" (poaching of rival party MLAs by the ruling Congress), similar to BJP's ‘Operation Kamala’ in 2019 that had led to the collapse of the JDS-Congress coalition government, is being defined as the grand-old party's bid to crush the opposition parties despite the Siddaramaiah government reigning strong with 136 legislators in the 224-member Assembly.
Interestingly, the legislators being wooed by the KPCC chief and deputy chief minister D.K. Shivakumar are among the turncoats—17 legislators from the Congress and the JDS, who had joined the BJP in 2019 paving the way for installing the B.S. Yediyurappa government.
Former Cooperation minister and Yeshwantpur MLA S.T. Somashekhar who met Shivakumar earlier this month also met Chief Minister Siddaramaiah triggering rumours of his joining the Congress party. After the meeting, BBMP granted development funds worth Rs 7.6 crore to Somashekhar's constituency.
This preferential treatment to a BJP MLA amid discontent brewing within the ruling party MLAs comes as a surprise. As many as 30 Congress legislators had recently complained to Siddaramaiah and the party leadership about non-implementation of development works in their constituencies and “careless attitude” of certain ministers.
While Somashekhar has denied that he would be joining the ruling party, his close aides and former corporators from his constituency joined the Congress party earlier this week. Rajarajeshwari Nagar MLA Munirathna, Mahalaxmi Layout MLA K. Gopalaiah and Yellapur MLA (Uttara Kannada) Shivaram Hebbar are also said to be “in talks” with the Congress leaders. The central BJP leadership has summoned Somashekhar to Delhi for a meeting on August 25, for damage control as most disgruntled legislators had alleged that local BJP leaders had been working against them.
Interestingly, the buzz over the "Ghar vapsi" of Somashekhar and Munirathna among others started soon after Shivakumar, who is also the Bengaluru Development minister, constituted four panels to probe into irregularities in the BBMP and refused to clear the pending bills citing incomplete works and fake bills. JDS leader and former chief minister H.D. Kumaraswamy, too, has alleged that the Congress was trying to "intimidate" and "lure" the JDS party workers in Yeshwantpur to join the ruling party.
Kumaraswamy's concerns are valid as his party with 19 members is at the risk of a split similar to that of Shiva Sena in Maharashtra, say insiders.
In its new avatar, the Congress party in Karnataka led by Shivakumar is not only aggressive but is also keen on pre-empting the rival’s every move. A JDS-BJP alliance could spoil the Congress' prospects in the Lok Sabha polls. So, "Operation Hasta" can prove to be an effective tool to lure the BJP legislators, especially those lacking an ideological connect with the BJP, say Congress insiders, who also recall a similar exercise of splitting the opposition parties by veteran leader S.M. Krishna.
"The Congress had won majority (122+) under Krishna. But he chose to break the opposition to weaken them and crush their morale. Then too, Shivakumar was the second in command," said a senior Congress leader.
The state BJP leaders, however, remain unperturbed by the turn of events as many senior leaders feel the turncoats have always been loyal not to the BJP but towards the "party in power" as they have their business interests to safeguard. While some are in real estate business, some are heading apex banks that are turning into dens of corruption.
The saffron party is however bracing for a tough battle in the general elections as it needs to retain all its 26 seats, even as the ruling Congress is hoping to win at least 18-20 seats. Last time, the Congress party won only one seat - Bengaluru Rural represented by Shivakumar's younger brother D.K. Suresh. Former Prime Minister H.D. Devegowda's grandson Prajwal Revanna got elected from Hassan, the sole seat won by the regional party.
The Congress which registered a thumping victory in the Assembly polls will need a sound strategy to beat BJP in the Lok Sabha polls as voters in Karnataka vote differently in the two elections. For instance, the BJP which won 104 seats in the 2018 Assembly polls was found to be leading in 170 Assembly segments in the parliament elections held in the following year. The Congress party which had won 78 Assembly seats had a lead only in 36 Assembly segments in 2019.
Interestingly, the BJP which was reduced to 66 seats due to a dismal performance across the state in the 2023 Assembly had bucked the trend in Bengaluru by winning 16 out of the 28 seats.
The BJP and the JDS cosying up to each other and the bonhomie at display between former chief minister Basavaraj Bommai and Kumaraswamy are being closely watched by Shivakumar, who suspects the opposition parties might join hands to defeat the Congress.
The Congress wooing back their MLAs from the BJP is part of a larger gameplan of Shivakumar who is keen to assert himself as a powerful leader by winning the Bengaluru civic polls and sweeping the Lok Sabha polls.
The "Operation Hasta" might end up breaking the opposition parties and help the Congress wrest control over Bengaluru by winning the BBMP polls and increase its tally of seats in the Lok Sabha polls. The two victories will certainly elevate Shivakumar's stature within the party to help him stake claim to the chief minister's post.
According to a Congress leader, the big wigs like D.K. Suresh might be asked to contest from Bengaluru city as it will have a ripple effect in the neighbouring districts like Tumkuru,Kolar, Chikkballapur, Ramanagara, Bengaluru rural among others.
The "Ghar vapsi" of Congress MLAs will hugely benefit Shivakumar, who is hoping to wrest control over Bengaluru city to establish his clout in the state capital by decimating the BJP and dwarfing the JDS in Old Mysuru region. Winning the three Parliament constituencies—Bangalore North, Central and South—will not only dislodge the BJP from its stronghold, but also help Shivakumar emerge as an unquestionable leader of the Vokkaliga community after Deve Gowda. The Vokkaliga being the second dominant community after the Lingayat in Karnataka, Shivakumar can aspire to be a mass leader like Yediyurappa, Devegowda or Siddaramaiah, who are backed by the Lingayat, Vokkaliga and 'Ahinda' (minorities, backward classes and Dalit) communities respectively.
The Congress overtures towards the JDS legislators have been unpalatable for Kumaraswamy as it puts the regional parties' survival at risk. At the same time, the return of the party-hoppers has not enthused many within the Congress party.
Home minister G. Parameshwara said that people who want to come back into the party’s fold were welcome, but they would not become “front benchers” bypassing the party loyalists.
Shivakumar, while addressing one such “ghar vapsi” event, cautioned the leaders and partyworkers against party-hopping at one’s whim. “After joining the Congress party, one should remain loyal to the party. It is not like hopping on and off a bus. Only when you stay longer in the party, you get seniority and higher responsibility in the party. I will not allow anyone to jump the queue,” said Shivakumar.
