BJP wants power to win more LS seats: Congress leader BL Shankar

Whenever a major political crisis happens, political party leaders tend to avoid the media for obvious reasons. This is because they know they may have to answer embarrassing questions posed by the media.

The ongoing attempts to destabilise the coalition government have raised many questions on ethics in politics and ideology. KPCC vice president and senior Congress leader, Dr B.L. Shankar was bold enough to speak about some of the issues concerning his party in the wake of BJP’s attempts to poach on Congress MLAs.  Here are excerpts from his interview.

Has the BJP triggered a crisis in Karnataka politics?
To be frank with you, it is not the BJP alone. But everyone knows that the BJP wants to desperately come to power. They have been trying to poach on our MLAs from day one. We also have to admit that some of our MLAs too have fallen into their trap, so the crisis has begun.

You might have more information. Why do you think the BJP desperately wants to  form a government now in Karnataka?
The answer is simple. If you see the national political scene, it is almost clear that the BJP will not come back to power. And if the BJP does not come to power at the Centre, it is clear that their chances of forming a government in Karnataka are ruled out. If the BJP fails to form a government in Karnataka, the state unit president, B.S. Yeddyurappa will not get a chance again to become CM in his lifetime. The only way for him to become  CM is to poach upon MLAs.
The other aspect is that the BJP thinks it can win more Lok Sabha seats if it has a government in Karnataka. Under the present circumstances, it is difficult for the BJP to win more than 10 LS seats in the state. Its calculation is that it can win more LS seats if it has a government here. So they are trying this tactic.

You said the BJP is poaching on your MLAs. If your MLAs are strong enough to withstand the temptation, the question of BJP luring your MLAs would not have not arisen?
 I agree. Some of our MLAs have come from the BJP. The majority of them are from Ballari region. No matter whichever party they are in, they have their own priorities.

You hinted that Congress MLAs too are fallible. Does it not reflect badly on the Congress party?
See the overall picture in politics since 2004. There is a clear decline in values. Now, we have reached a stage where we are witnessing political degeneration because of decline of values. We do not know where we will reach finally.

Why did the Congress have to take legislators to a resort after your party criticised the BJP for indulging in resort politics?
There is no other option but to do so.The BJP has 104 MLAs and four days back, they weaned away two independent MLAs. Then when we called the legislature party meeting, four remained absent. They were planning to lure more. If it had happened, the government would have lost its majority. To avoid such a situation, we had to take them to a safe place.

Ever since the coalition came to power, it looks like Congress ministers are not working upto the expectations of people. Doesn’t it clearly shows the coalition experiment has failed?
Not really. There are many factors involved. Firstly, a party having 80 seats has extended support to a party with 38 seats. But, to keep the BJP out, we have taken a policy decision. Our ministers are working hard. Loan waiver is one scheme which is taking a major chunk of fund allocation. The other departments have plans as per the budgetary resources. So, the ministers are maintaining low profile. It is wrong to say they are not working.

When the coalition government took over, it was described as a dry run for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. After eight months, it is almost clear that the Karnataka experiment is directionless. Doesn’t it affect the opposition parties at the national level?
No no. In India, voters do not go by one trend and vote. The coalition’s success or failure can’t be a poll plank at the national level. Every state has its own issues and people vote accordingly. So, this will not be a national issue.