Bengaluru: The crucial meeting convened by BJP national president, Amit Shah on January 28 may not yield the desired results if the national leadership confines itself to reining in the two recalcitrant leaders, B.S. Yeddyurappa and K.S. Eshwarappa.
Highly placed sources in the party told Deccan Chronicle that stringent action may have to be taken against south-India co-ordinating secretary, B.L. Santhosh who is the man behind this crisis.
Tracing the roots of the crisis, sources said, “It all started at the high command level with Delhi leaders given inputs by several state leaders not to make B.S. Yeddyurappa the state unit chief. The state leaders wanted Mr Yeddyurappa to be projected as the CM candidate and someone else to be appointed as state chief. This would balance the power equations within the state unit. But, the top brass went ahead and made Mr Yeddyurappa the state chief and is now facing the music.”
The second mistake the party top brass did was to listen more to Mr Santhosh when it came to Karnataka affairs. Mr Santhosh has of late, turned out to be enemy number 1 of Mr Yeddyurappa and reportedly picked Mr Eshwarappa to continue his proxy war against the former CM.
“Mr Santhosh has problems with the Ananth Kumar group too when he was the state organising secretary. So, he could not rely on Mr Kumar and Co to pick a fight with Mr Yeddyurappa and chose Mr Eshwarappa who is pliable. Mr Eshwarappa after losing the last assembly elections in Shivamogga, was nursing s grudge against Mr Yeddyurappa and was only ready to take up the fight against the Lingayat strongman through the fledgling Sangolli Rayanna Brigade,” sources explained. The party top brass is sure to clip the wings of Mr Yeddyurappa who may not be able to wield his clout during the selection of candidates for the next assembly elections, sources said. Nor will Mr Eshwarappa, who is in the firing line, be spared for his harangue against Mr Yeddyurappa.
“If the party top brass pardons Mr Santhosh and takes action against only the two top guns in the state, the crisis will rear its head again in a different form some time later because Mr Santhosh the man behind the tussle, will continue to be in the ring," sources explained.
