Still playing second fiddle to BS Yediyurappa, Basavaraj Bommai faces a litmus test

As a result, the 63-year-old from the Sadar Lingayat community has been reduced to playing second fiddle to Yediyurappa, especially during election campaigns. His descent from the good books of the BJP’s central leadership, as well as those of his ministerial colleagues and other fellow MLAs, was due to a range of factors. The central leadership is said to have lost faith in him around November 2021 itself, after he failed to ensure the victory of the BJP candidate at the Hangal bypoll, necessitated by the death of party MLA C M Udasi. That Hangal is next door to Bommai’s constituency Shiggaon, was a major loss of face for the CM.

Other legislators had raised complaints about the centralised nature of Bommai’s administration, which forced them to knock on his doors more often than not.

The Panchamasali reservation protests, which, according to some in the BJP, were designed to upset Yediyurappa and eventually remove him as CM, now appear to have boomeranged on Bommai, threatening his electoral prospects in the May 10 polls. The community, which is still bickering over reservations, has a sizable presence in Shiggaon.

That apart, the CM’s announcement on Wednesday that filmstar Sudeep will campaign for him and some other BJP candidates is being seen as a sign of Bommai’s underlying nervousness. “For what it’s worth, in any Assembly election, the star campaigner for the party should be the CM. That Bommai himself had to announce Sudeep’s support does not augur well, and aren’t signs of a confident leader,” a BJP functionary said.

Like his predecessor, Bommai appears to have wavered during his tenure by attracting a regular stream of criticism over various issues. He is accused of failing to tackle all such issues — from communal polarisation to corruption — head on instead allowing them to fester at the expense of the state’s image. The Congress’s anti-corruption campaigns, like the “PayCM” posters, also dented the CM’s image of being an efficient leader. He is also infamous for his comments on moral policing by vigilantes. Responding to media queries in October 2021, months after he became the CM, Bommai said, “There will be action and reaction when there is no morality in society.” It drew the ire of human rights groups and appears to have left a lasting impression on the people.

The CM’s father, S R Bommai, the fourth Chief Minister of Karnataka, was a noted socialist and follower of leftist leader M N Roy. A mechanical engineering graduate, Basavaraj followed in his father’s footsteps and was first elected MLC from the Dharwad Local Authorities constituency despite the senior Bommai’s reluctance in letting the son use his credentials. He was elected MLC twice — in 1998 and 2004 — on a Janata Dal (United) ticket and also served as the political secretary to former Chief Minister J H Patel before joining the BJP in 2008, a year after his father’s death. He was elected as an MLA for the first time that year.

Since then, Bommai has represented Shiggaon thrice consecutively. He was the water resources minister between 2008 and 2013 and home minister before his elevation as CM.