My task cut out... To infuse young blood into JD(S): Prajwal Revanna

In what seems to be a masterstroke by Janata Dal (Secular) patriarch Mr H.D. Deve Gowda, he has  appointed his grandson Mr Prajwal Revanna as party general secretary,  paving way for his daughter-in-law Mrs Anitha Kumaraswamy to contest from Chennapatna. This raises the question whether the 27-year-old rising star of the Gowda clan is happy with this decision. Going by his reactions in an interview with Deccan Chronicle,  Prajwal seem unfazed and says he has his task cut- infuse young blood in the party.  He feels the JD(S) has failed to market itself, though the party had done good work in the past. Compared to the two national parties – Bharatiya Janata Party and Congress, JD(S) has struck a proper balance between rural and urban needs. However, the national parties scored by branding themselves as champions of development. Here are excerpts from the interview.

Becoming General Secretary of a party at 27 is a big responsibility. How do you plan to handle this responsibility?

It is a big responsibility  but I have my task cut out. I have to infuse a lot of young blood into the party organisation.I want to discuss this with MLA, Mr Madhu Bangarappa. Today, in every political party, we see a lot of mature and older politicians in the forefront. Most youngsters take a back seat and probably work on  social media. They are not told that they too have their say in politics. I want to convince them that they matter a lot and they would be given due importance. Apart from being on social media, they also have to work in the field and make their presence felt. Then, seniors will start taking them seriously. I am working towards this objective. With election is round the corner, along with drawing youth, we have to engage in other organisational work. I feel, this particular period will be challenging.

You have reservations about the role of social media? You want youth not to rely too much on it.

Social media is an important tool to reach people. We are using it and we will continue to upgrade the technology to cater to the changing environment. But, we cannot just depend on it.  Personal interaction is more important in politics. We will use social media to the fullest extent but I will encourage youth to show their faces to people and reach out personally, which will yield better results in electoral politics.

The JD(S) is known to be a party of farmers with a tilt towards particular communities. How are you planning to shed this image?

According to me, JD(S) has been able to strike a perfect balance of the urban and rural, representing all communities and people from all walks of life. However, we have failed to brand it like the Congress or BJP. For the last one decade, FDI has been the mantra for development. If you recall, it was Mr Deve Gowda, as Chief Minister who went to Davos and attracted FDI. He framed policies conducive for investment, triggering the development of Bengaluru. If you consider the Electronics City flyover or other infrastructure projects in the city, they were initiated when Mr Kumaraswamy was Chief Minister. What about the confession by none other than Mr Narayanamurthy of Infosys that Bengaluru received uninterrupted power supply during the coalition era (of JD(S) and BJP)? At that time, Mr Revanna( Prajwal’s father)  was the power minister. Even the Namma Metro project was initiated when Mr Deve Gowda was Prime Minister. He declared five cities as cosmopolitan and sanctioned the Metro service. No one took it forward and Mr Kumaraswamy had to take the initiative again. We have a large number of people living in rural areas, depending on farming. This cuts across caste and community lines. Since Mr Deve Gowda comes from that background, our party gives a lot of importance to them too. I feel, no other party in the state has this kind of balance.  Though their contribution to the state’s development is not great, the Congress and BJP succeeded in branding themselves. They lured peo ple with colourful promises. This is where my role gains  importance. I have to put our party achievements together and present it in a proper perspective.

So, you will give the party a brand image?

See, we have to set our priorities right. This cannot be done overnight. We are fighting the elections in six months. So, we have a short term and long term plan for that. First, we have to package what is important for the elections. Later, we have to continue with our long term strategies. The present task is to mobilise youth and put forth our party agenda before the people. 

You wanted to contest the elections but you have been assigned party work. Are you unhappy? Did the ' internal bickering’ in the family force you out of the electoral fray?

To be honest, I am very happy that Mr Deve Gowda has given me such a huge responsibility at this young age. Running a party is no joke and I will be working with very senior leaders. I will be learning a lot of things. When you speak about internal bickering, I have no clue what people are talking about. Most media reports quote sources. I have never spoken to any source. There are a lot of things about my family, which people are ignorant about. Among my generation in the family, I was the first to say I wanted to pursue a political career. I was given the freedom to express it. If my grandfather had no faith in me, would he appoint me general secretary? Secondly, they say I have differences with my uncle Mr Kumaraswamy. If I need to succeed in politics, I need his support. He is the party president and I will be working under him.

It is said that Nikhil Kumaraswamy is waiting in the shadows to enter politics later?

We cousins maintain a very close relationship. I and Nikhil meet up for lunch or dinner. He has never told me that he wants to enter politics and usually advises me to go slow in politics. His reasoning is sensible. He talks more about his movie career. Even if he decides to enter politics, there is space. While I carve out a niche for myself, Nikhil can also create  a niche. I don't think it is something anyone should be upset about. We have a long time ahead of us.