Yeddyurappa heads to Delhi, signs of co-operation bring relief to BJP

Mangalore Today News Network

Bangalore, March 21, 2012:  BS Yeddyurappa is expected to arrive in Delhi this afternoon from Bangalore, where he has displayed his ability to split his party, the BJP, if he is pushed. In Karnataka, the BJP is in power for the first time.  Mr Yeddyurappa, who is demanding another shot at being Chief Minister, had placed more than half the BJP’s MLAs or representatives in the Assembly in a five-star resort since the weekend.   They refused yesterday to report to work, making it impossible for current Chief Minister Sadananda Gowda to present his budget.
 
Mr Yeddyurappa’s camp arrived, as promised by him last night, at the Assembly this morning.  In another sign of cooperation, he has asked his candidate for the Rajya Sabha, BJ Puttaswamy, to withdraw from the election. As an act of defiance, Mr Yeddyurappa had said that Mr Puttaswamy would contest the Rajya Sabha seat against official BJP candidates.
 
The compromises being paraded today will offer some relief to the BJP, which knows it cannot do without Mr Yeddyurappa in Karnataka, one of the few states where it’s in power. On Monday, BJP president Nitin Gadkari requested Mr Yeddyurappa to be patient and "not to do anything that will hurt the BJP." 

In July last year, the BJP asked Mr Yeddyurappa to step down after a report on illegal mining in the state accused him of corruption. Last week, a court dismissed those charges, triggering Mr Yeddyurappa’s aggressive campaign to return to office.

The dispute has caste overtones as well. Mr Yeddyurappa, a Lingayat, chose a Vokkaliga to replace him. Both are dominant communities in the state - and the BJP is in a bind now in case they have alienated the Lingayat vote bank. Would one time Yeddyurappa foe turned ally, Jagadish Shettar, another Lingayat, be a potential Chief Ministerial choice that would satisfy Mr Yeddyurappa if he is given the chair himself? And how would the Vokkaliga community react to a Chief Minister from their community being dumped on the demands of the volatile Mr Yeddyurappa? Elections to the state assembly are due in 2013.