BENGALURU: Bookanakere Siddalingappa Yediyurappa, the Lingayat strongman who, one can say, single-handedly catapulted the Bharatiya Janata Party to become a formidable force in Karnataka from the Jan Sangh days—with some help from Ananth Kumar—called it quits on electoral politics on Friday as the 15th Assembly drew to an end.
Though this may sound like a political obituary, it is still not over for the 79-year-old veteran politician, who holds some key positions in the party at the national level. “He is a 24-hour politician and will remain so. He said in his last speech that he would continue to build the party till his last breath, which was acknowledged by Prime Minister Narendra Modi with aplomb. His exit as Chief Minister and his retirement from electoral politics were in line with what the party wanted and then there are underlying factors that revolve around what BSY wants. There will be some organic political developments stemming from this difference and will take its course after the Karnataka Assembly results this summer,” said a family member.
Well, that’s a point of discussion for another day, but for now it is curtains on a political career spanning over 40 years that has all the twists and turns of a political potboiler. From being the torchbearer of the BJP to forging an alliance with JDS and opening account in South India in 2007, to being embroiled in corruption charges with the infamous Bellary Reddy brothers and stepping down to being jailed—his highs and lows were quite a roller-coaster ride.
BSY fell out with L.K. Advani and quit the BJP. He then formed his own party, Karnataka Janata Party, which ended up as a vote cutter for the BJP. In 2014, it was BSY 2.0 as he returned to the party fold and declared his open support to Narendra Modi to be projected as the Prime Ministerial candidate. From then on, BSY, who was on mission mode, toured the state and built the party once again. With age catching up, he didn’t have much time on hand and the party too accommodated him in more than one way—with 10 seats short of the magic number, the party had to face some embarrassment as he had to resign six days after being sworn in as the Supreme Court issued a 24-hour deadline to prove his majority. A year later the party stood rock solid behind BSY, braving the Operation Lotus blushes that saw him in the top job—BSY was sworn in for the fourth time as CM but the paradox is that he has never completed a term.
Although the central BJP gave him a long rope, it was a matter of time before he had to make way for a new leadership with some considerable time left in office. The BJP can be regimental and is quite serious about hygiene in the party. The party knows well that it needs BSY and in all earnestness, it has tread cautiously during this transition. It did put BSY on important panels but at the same time sent a strong message that the party would not entertain dynastic politics or para-dropping of anyone. This means that B.Y. Vijayendra, who for the last two years has emerged as the political heir of BSY, will have to go through the grind, climb the ladder, the rank and file. The party has ensured that there is no implosion and damage is kept minimal, thanks to the dexterity of the Modi, Shah and Nadda troika. The brass has already declared that personality and caste-based politics will not be the party’s philosophy.
BSY will play a very significant role in the upcoming Assembly elections and this factor will be at play. It is not over till it is over, after all, it is the political Nataka (drama) in Karnataka.
