Bengaluru: The JD (S) is facing some sort of an existential crisis after the results of the state Assembly elections. It is also getting attracted to the BJP for everyone to see.
The JD (S) appears to be moving into the BJP under the concept of an enemy’s enemy is a friend. Siddaramaiah, who was expelled from the JD (S) in 2005 has grown strong since then, and is the first enemy of the JD (S).
In addition, Deputy Chief Minister and Vokkaliga influential leader D. K. Shivakumar, who has crushed the JD (S) influence in the old Mysuru region, is another enemy. Shivakumar has been yearning to further expand his dominance after he took over as Chief Minister.
JD (S) Supremo H. D. Deve Gowda’s visit to Delhi and the party’s statements are not as simple as it appears. Maitri Vichakala Gowda has gone a step further. Gowda’s presence at the inauguration ceremony of the new Parliament house despite other opposition parties and his old friends boycotting the event is an indication that the JDb(S)-BJP relationship is quite deep, he observed.
The two parties do not have a clear answer to the question of whether the JD (S) will ally with the BJP for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. According to sources, the BJP-JD (S) is not open to an open alliance, but there will be politics of compromise.
In the 2018 Assembly elections, the BJP is suspected to have shifted its votes to the JD (S) in Chamundeshwari constituency. It may be recalled that G. T. Devegowda had secured 1.21 lakh votes in this constituency.
The transfer was clearly visible as the BJP’s votes rose from 12,064 in 2018 to 51,318 in 2023, a four-fold increase. Former JD (S) President B. Somashekhar had revealed information about this secret understanding when he left the party six weeks ago.
For the JD (S), it is an existential question. With just 19 seats, the numbers have shrunk and it is much weaker than before. Along with that, from 7/7 seats in Mandya Lok Sabha constituency to just 1.
The Janata Dal suffered its first major setback in Karnataka in 1999. In 1994-1999, it was reduced from the ruling party to the position of just one small opposition party. The JD (U) lost the northern part of the Lingayat-dominated state and the JD (S) lost the Vokkaliga dominance in the South.
Deve Gowda, who feels that the road ahead is difficult for the JD (S), wants to join hands with the BJP. The JD (S) contested the Lok Sabha elections alone and realised that if the vote share falls below 10 per cent, there is a risk in the next three elections. According to political analyst B. S. Murthy, Gowda has sensed the setback in the state BJP leadership and is trying to fill the gap.