State leadership’s role, rebels within and campaign disconnect: On BJP’s Karnataka post mortem table

A former BJP MLA said: “Several state leaders informed the central leadership about the discontent against Kateel. But no action was taken, and he was allowed to continue.”

That several Lingayat leaders considered close to the rival B S Yediyurappa camp defeated BJP candidates is also a factor that will be on the post mortem table. He was among many leaders in the state who had expressed reservations over Santhosh’s “handling” of Karnataka affairs, despite his move to a central role. Many in the Yediyurappa camp allege that his rivals drew strength from Santhosh’s support. Ravi, for example, took a swipe at Yediyurappa during ticket distribution when the BJP veteran was looking for a ticket for his son.

With Ravi, and some other leaders backed by Santhosh losing this time, sources pointed out how several candidates backed by the general secretary (organisation) in 2018, too, had lost.

Sources in the RSS said the Sangh leadership had been made aware about some of these issues – Santhosh is an RSS man loaned to the BJP – and it, in turn, had passed along this to the BJP leadership. But no action was taken. From the other side too, several BJP leaders are believed to have reached out to the RSS over Santhosh’s style of functioning.

Before the polls, Santhosh had been openly attacked by Jagadish Shettar, a long-time BJP leader who quit the party after being denied a ticket. Soon after he had joined the BJP, the six-time MLA said Santhosh had “taken complete control of the Karnataka BJP” and the state unit was “in the clutches of Santhosh and his followers”.

The 67-year-old lost in the recent elections to the BJP’s Mahesh Tenginakayi, considered a Santhosh man, from Hubli-Dharwad Central constituency.

Santhosh was also held responsible for former Deputy CM and another Lingayat leader, Laxman Savadi, leaving the BJP for the Congress (Savadi won in the recent polls).

Despite repeated attempts, Santhosh was not available for comment. But his allies in the party strongly defend him and dismiss claims linking him to the defeat. Former education minister Dr C N Ashwathnarayan, a Santosh confidant who won, slammed the “slander campaign” and called it a bid to weaken the party.

“Slander is the last weapon of miscreants who cannot ideologically face individuals who have dedicated their lives to the party organisation and nation, without any desire for power… It is very important at this point of time to be careful about those who are spreading such negative reports in a vain bid to weaken the party. There will be an introspection of the loss. It will show us the path for the next victory,” he said.

A BJP functionary under the condition of anonymity said it was unfair to lay the blame on Santhosh, adding whether he would have got the credit had the party won. “This is just a blame game,” he said, adding that the party had failed as a “collective unit”.

C T Ravi told The Indian Express that Santhosh “was working for an ideology. Every party worker knows how dedicated he is”.

The party is also set to take into account the fact that in at least 10 seats in the central Karnataka region, where former Yediyurappa associates were contesting, the BJP candidates lost. One of these seats was Chikmagalur, where Ravi lost to H D Thammaiah by 5,926 votes. Thammaiah, fielded by the Congress, is a Lingayat and has been a close associate of Yediyurappa.

Despite having learnt its lesson the hard way in 2013 when an angry Yediyurappa’s rebellion against the BJP had cost it dear, the party again sidelined the Lingayat stalwart this time – first dropping him as CM and then refusing him a ticket – before trying to make amends at the last minute.

Now, there are again voices questioning Yediyurappa’s removal as CM in 2021, against his wishes. While the veteran was later named to the BJP’s highest-decision-making body, the Parliamentary Board, and Central Election Committee, many in the state BJP believe that the BJP could have won if Yediyurappa was still the CM.

Yediyurappa and Santhosh have had a long-running and much-known feud in Karnataka political circles. Back in 2017, when this sparring spilled into a public spat, the BJP had removed four leaders from senior party posts.

On the national picture, the BJP’s poor performance in Karnataka has triggered some “second thoughts” on the party’s position on freebies – articulated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself, dismissing the same as “revdi culture” – given the role welfare schemes have played in propping up a more equitable social system in the south.

A section of the BJP leaders believe Modi’s attack on the Congress’s five poll guarantees didn’t find an echo with voters.

Overall though, the party’s assessment is that the results are not a reflection of the people’s sentiments regarding either the leadership or the government of Modi at the Centre – and that it would have limited impact on the Lok Sabha elections in 2024.