The Game is not yet Over in Karnataka

By Sagar Satapathy:  The Congress, BJP’s rivals, Modi’s critics, Lutyen’s Media, Ecosystem and the “United Opposition” celebrate the fall of BS Yeddyurappa Govt in Karnataka, which lasted for just two days.

They have a reason to smile today. But, is it the last laugh? Did BJP really fail to get a few MLAs in Karnataka to prove majority?

We all know BJP has the Money Power & the Agencies to make or break MLAs in Karnataka or in any other parts of the country. With the kind of politicians we have in Karnataka, it’s not at all difficult to bring majority of them under ED/I-T scanner.

I also don’t think we have such honest people in Politics who will resist the temptation of becoming cash rich by Rs 20-100 Crore along with Ministerial berths, invoking ethics and morality or ideology. May be a few are there, but not all. Some say BJP did not get enough time to poach. If that’s the case, these MLAs can be poached anytime in future for a different purpose.

So, why Amit Shah failed? Why he could not get just 7 MLAs? It’s the vigilant Judiciary, public outrage and fear of united Opposition that dissuaded him from going for the kill.

Had BJP formed the Govt in Karnataka by splitting Congress & JD(S), it would have sent a completely wrong message to public. In Goa, Meghalaya, Mizoram, they mustered allies. But, in Karnataka, they needed defectors & rebels. Such a Govt would not last long.

As the Supreme Court took a strong note of what happened in Karnataka, Congress & Opposition were charged up, public disapproved the act and even there was discomfort among BJP supporters, the top brass decided to let Karnataka go to Congress-JD(S) for the time being.

Now, BJP has enough time & opportunity to create a public opinion against Congress-JD(S) alliance, which is full of contradictions. They will reach out to people to gain sympathy, try to spilt both parties using all tricks, which would look genuine, but never try to form the Govt with splinter groups.

If Congress-JD(S) Govt fails in Karnataka, it would help BJP to discredit the Opposition Unity and ‘Regional Front’ politics mooted by Mamata Banerjee. That would help Modi in 2019. He would make people believe that only BJP can provide a stable government.

Let’s see what results BJP would get from this Karnataka experiment. Yes, it’s definitely a big risk. But, they hardly had any other options. It was the best available strategy and Amit Shah went for it.