It's existential crisis for JD(S): Dr BL Shankar

A clash of personalities, which has been recurring again and again with no ideological  questions involved. That’s how I would sum up the conflicts in the Janata Dal(S),  which have now reached boiling point with a section of party MLAs getting suspended for their proximity to the Congress.

Anyone familiar with Indian politics would know that the Janata Party, the precursor of the Janata Dal(S) was a child born out of a situation-the Emergency-when the main thrust was to fight  the  Congress led by Late Indira Gandhi. There was no meeting of minds but only a unity of purpose.

This lack of ideological unity led to split after split in the Janata Party with Choudhry Charan Singh  walking out, followed by Mulayam Singh who launched the Samajwadi Party and the breaking away of the Jana Sangh.

The story of the Janata parivar in Karnataka is no different, after the Jana Sangh walked out, what remained here was the Congress (O), the Praja Socialist party (PSP), SSP and  a splinter group of the Swatantra Party. Nor has Karnataka been alien to personality based politics.

When H.D. Deve Gowda was denied an MLA ticket in 1962 and in 1967 by Congress veteran S. Nijalingappa. Mr Gowda rebelled and won as an independent. Though, Nijalingappa, Ramakrishna Hegde and Mr Gowda were in the same party, the old wounds never healed.

It was personality centric politics at work when the Janata parivar lost badly in the 1977 Lok Sabha polls and 1978 Assembly polls in Karnataka when Mr Gowda was state president-a post he secured much against the will of Nijalingappa, who had backed Veerendra Patil.

The golden era of the Janata parivar was between 1985 and 1988, when all titans were in the party. From 1988, the downslide began after  Mr Hegde and Mr Gowda fell apart. This could be one reason why the BJP found its roots in Karnataka, and successfully occupied the space gradually vacated by the Janata Parivar.

Coming to recent developments in Janata Dal (S), in the absence of stalwarts like Hegde, S.R. Bommai, J.H. Patel, Nazeersab and  Siddaramaiah, Mr Gowda and his politically active sons are leaders of JD(S). The leaders who have rebelled now, were once very close to the Gowda family. There is no ideology involved in the dissent, it is only personal comfort which matters.

To get to the bottom of the present crisis, one will have to understand Mr Gowda. Rebellion is in his blood In the last 50 years, he has put together an outfit-whatever name or shape it may be in- to fight the Congress and has positioned himself by speaking in favour of farmers and his Vokkaliga community.

He may be ageing but he is still a force to reckon with in at least five to six districts. He is able to control at least 10 per cent of votes.  It is only Mr Gowda, late S. Bangarappa and B.S. Yeddyurappa who have been able to command support in double digits.

The dilemma facing the JD(S) is that it cannot come to power on its own. Neither can it choose the Congress nor can it go with the BJP blindly because of Mr Gowda's  proximity to the Leftists in Kerala. This is the bleak future staring at younger leaders of the JD(S) who are looking beyond the 2018 elections.  

Compared to Mr Gowda, his son, Mr Kumaraswamy is open minded and ready to  align with anyone if it helps him. This clash between Mr Gowda and Mr Kumaraswamy is the reason why a splinter group of MLAs voted in favour of Congress in the Rajya Sabha polls.

Unless the JD(S) overcomes this existential crisis of whom to align with,  I don't think it can pose a major challenge to Congress or  BJP in 2018. This crisis in JD(S) will continue till the next Assembly polls, when Karnataka is sure to witness a political polarization.

(As told to N.B. Hombal. The author is vice-president, KPCC, and was once close to JD(S) supremo H.D. Deve Gowda)