Malikayya Guttedar: I lost because Dalits, minorities voted against me

KALABURAGI: The strongman of Afzalpur, Mr Malikayya Guttedar, who defected to the BJP on the eve of the Assembly election, had challenged the leadership of Senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge, but he had to bite the dust. Moreover the BJP, which was heavily dependent on him in its attempt to fare well in the four districts of Hyderabad Karnataka region (except Koppal and Ballari), could not make much headway. In a candid interview with Deccan Chronicle, Mr Malikayya explains the reasons why things did not go his way.

What were the reasons for your defeat in Afzalpur? You were considered invincible there. Where did things go wrong?
I lost due to three main reasons. One, after I joined the BJP, the Congress vote bank – of backward classes, Dalits and minorities- deserted me. Though the fight between me and Mr Mallikarjun Kharge was personal, the Dalits worked against me. The minorities too voted against me en masse. The second reason was that Mr Kharge worked against me. A Lingayat candidate, Mr Rajendra Kumar Pail was fielded as the JD(S) candidate and was funded to split the Lingayat votes. The third reason was overconfidence on the part of my brothers, to whom I had entrusted the responsibility of managing the campaign as I was touring the Hyderabad Karnataka region.

Does that mean you made a mistake by joining the BJP?
No, no. I knew this beforehand.That’s why I had suggested to Mr Yeddyurappa (BJP state president) to make Mr M.Y. Patil the party candidate from Afzalpur and give me a free hand to tour the Hyderabad Karnataka region to enable the party win about 20 seats. But Mr M.Y. Patil was not only offered the Congress ticket, he was also funded well by the Kharge group. Mr Patil was told that he would be made a member of the Upper House, if he failed to get elected. If I was not the candidate, I would have devoted more time for the HK region and won the seats, some of which we lost by a narrow margin.

As you know very well, today elections are won largely on the basis of the caste factor and also money power. The Idiga community that you belong to, has no vote base in the Hyderabad Karnataka region. And moreover during your six terms as legislator, you had confined yourself to Afzalpur and never tried to grow outside your constituency. How did you manage to convince the BJP leadership that you were the right leader to lead the party in the HK region?
I agree with you that my community vote base is very limited. But in the past when I had led the Karnataka Congress Party in the HK region, I had got four MLAs elected. So I have organized the party in the past. I was a Minister in the J.H. Patel government. As Gulbarga district incharge minister, I got Rs 200 crore sanctioned for ten bridge cum barrages across the Bhima river.

There are two views; one that the BJP has got a shot in arm following your entry into the party. The second view is that with your intemperate remarks and reckless behavior you spoiled not only your chances, but harmed the prospects of the BJP in some constituencies. Do you agree with these views?
No no.. I did not behave recklessly..I would have been emotional but I was feeling suffocated in the Congress. My pride was hurt. I had only two options- either surrender to Kharge or take on him. There was no question of surrendering as the earlier compromise meetings had failed…So I walked out of that party.

You called Mr Priyank Kharge a bachcha…
It was Mr Priyank who was responsible for provoking me. He came to my constituency to take part in a function organised by my political opponents
and gave a call to voters to “elect a good legislator”. So what does it mean? So I called him a bachcha.. it is not derogatory. It’s slang for (an immature) boy.

How do you assess the BJP’s performance in the district as well as in the region in this election?
We have done well in the district- won four seats of the total nine. We could have done well if tickets had been distributed properly and party candidates given more funds. We could have won Chittapur if some more effort had been put in by the candidate. In Raichur, we lost Maski by a narrow margin. There was a mistake in selecting the candidate in Lingasugur. In Chincholi, a Lambani candidate should have been given the ticket.

I agree that there are serious allegations againt Mr G Janardhan Reddy. But if he was allowed to work by himself, he could have got eight-ten more seats for us. In Nagathan, Govind Karjol’s son should not have been given the ticket.
The BJP is now strong enough to take on Mr Kharge in the coming Lok Sabha election. The BJP leaders in the district had no guts to face Mr Kharge, so the party was weak. Now we are stronger and it will help us in the coming Parliament election.

There are allegations that when Mr Kharge contested the previous Lok Sabha polls, you worked against him and he did not get a big lead in the 2009 and 2014 Lok Sabha elections.?
It’s not my mistake. The Lingayats in my constituency don’t vote for Mr Kharge because he never helped them. It’s not that Mr Kharge is anti-Lingayat. But there is a strong feeling that he did not help Lingayat leaders grow and realise their potential.