At last, 11 days after the election results came out, on 15th May 2018, Karnataka got its new Government with much drama and suspense.

Now is the time for sharing the spoils of election-war. Without wasting time, the top leaders engaged themselves in the Ministry formation exercise immediately after the Assembly was adjourned following the trust vote.

And look at the line-up of these top leaders. The Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy, his brother H.D. Revanna, former Congress Chief Minister Siddharamaiah, AICC General Secretary in-charge of Karnataka K.C. Venugopal and the Deputy Chief Minister Dr. G. Parameshwara. Two from JD(S) (being brothers, a family affair) and three from the Congress.

In this meeting, JD(S) demanded five key portfolios, considered gold mines, namely Finance, Revenue, Water Resources (Irrigation, I guess), PWD and Energy. In the Siddharamaiah Government, Energy was held by the “Khalnayak” of Congress D.K. Shivakumar. You know what it means! During the election campaign I was returning from Bengaluru in my car and I saw some necks in the car in front craning backwards. I instinctively did the same and whom do I see? D.K. Shivakumar seated in the front seat of his BMW, Suv. I smiled at the “hero” (as mentioned by the Speaker yesterday in the Assembly) and he returned the smile as he drove past me. I wonder if he recognised me, having met him only twice before… Let it be.

The point to ponder here is that while the JD(S) could decide on their demands on the spot, the Congress members said they would discuss with the High Command in Delhi before taking a final decision. No wonder, our contributor Senior Journalist R.P. Jagadeesh had written only a few days back in this paper that henceforth Congress in Karnataka will have two High Commands. One, the Congress in Delhi and other the JD(S) in Bengaluru. How prophetic and how true!

Be that as it may, I am just wondering if all the MLAs of all the parties in the present Assembly are honourable. Obviously yes. Otherwise, how could they get the tickets to contest? The Representation of the People Act, which decides on the qualification of the candidates, must have ensured only the ‘honourable’ members are given ticket to contest the election. And here they are. Alleluia!!

However, I am left wondering how come BJP could rehabilitate the Reddy brothers of Ballari, who are accused of illegal mining and the Congress, not to be left behind, gave tickets to many tainted persons? May be because, in Karnataka, corruption has become a non-issue, as Justice Santosh Hegde, former Lokayukta, says. He must know. Hamam mein sab nange hain, in the bathroom all are naked.

But, let me look at some of these top honourable men. Let me start with Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy. According to The Hindu, he has seven cases, four related to illegal mining and three related to denotification of land. Who knows, the nemesis may soon catch up with the Chief Minister…

Luckily, Siddharamaiah, who is now an MLA from Badami, has no cases against him. Not that he was a paragon of virtue, only he is intelligent and smart enough to get himself a clean chit while still in power. He was accused in the Arkavathy Layout re-modification scheme. He was accused of denotifying over 900 acres of land. Wah! Later a judicial inquiry cleared his name. Sadly, for B.S. Yeddyurappa, it was Lokayukta with a former Supreme Court Judge Santosh Hegde presiding over it became his nemesis and got himself damned and sent to jail because he was refused bail (at a time bail was a right). Lack of luck! These observations of mine do not mean I countenance corruption. It means all accused must be treated even-handedly by those who dispense justice.

Siddharamaiah was also caught in the snare of a Hublot Rs. 80 lakh super-luxury wrist watch which he received allegedly as a bribe! He managed to escape from the case claiming it to be a gift and in time, wisely, handed it over to the Assembly Speaker. No case could be filed even by the habitual PIL warriors! Alleluia again.

Lucky again. Bengaluru environmentalists and the concerned citizens were up in arms against Siddharamaiah and his Minister K.J. George about the steel flyover project to ease traffic to Kempegowda International Airport at Devanahalli. Kickback, screamed the well-meaning commuters of Bengaluru.

An alleged diary entry found during an IT raid at Congress MLC Govindaraj’s house showed an entry that the party had received Rs. 65 crore kickback for construction of a steel flyover. The charge fizzled out as the steel flyover project itself was shelved. Siddu is indeed an honourable man.

As for Yeddyurappa, who like Hamlet is a tragic hero of Karnataka politics, there is no corruption case pending against him. However, appeals against the Lower Courts’ decisions clearing him are pending before the Supreme Court. Any adverse decision there would lead to 20 cases of corruption being reopened. Considering this, I guess that he must have been a soft-target for the habitual PIL warriors. Wonder, how he could make himself so vulnerable being in public life when others like Siddharamaiah could play the game  as a winner!

Then there is D.K. Shivakumar, a potential future Chief Minister of Karnataka, against whom an IT raid was held in August 2017 and the case is now before the ED. There were some forest land-grabbing cases also but they were probably politically motivated ones. So he is an honourable man too.

Likewise, we have our honourable men in our Assembly representing us to serve all the people of Karnataka to lead a prosperous, happy and peaceful life for another five years, hopefully.

Best of luck to Congress-JD(S) coalition Government. BJP can now go into a silent-mode till 2019.

Jai Karnataka. Jai Hind.

e-mail: kbg@starofmysore.com

The post Karnataka’s Honourable MLAs All appeared first on Star of Mysore.

Governor, the word has a grand ring to it. And why not? After all, a Governor lives in a grand manor, dines in grand manner, travels in a grand private jet and graces only grand occasions. No wonder only grand-fathers and grand-mothers become Governors in their grand-old-age.

But, it is also a home where loyalists and powerful leaders are sent away after their relevance in active politics. In fact, a Congress Minister stated on camera that former President Pratibha Patil became the President “by serving well in the kitchen of Sonia Gandhi.” Now Karnataka Governor-Chancellor Vajubhai R. Vala is accused of being loyal to BJP and not democracy.

Also, Raj Bhavans have become protective bunkers for party loyalists who are facing corruption charges. Best example being Sheila Dikshit, who was immediately made Governor of Kerala after she lost the Delhi election. And soon she approached the Delhi High Court for quashing an FIR against her in a graft case, submitting that such proceedings cannot be continued against a Governor. Wah!

Then there are spendthrifts like former Mizoram Governor Kamla Beniwal. It is reported that she cost the State exchequer Rs. 8 crore a year! And often went for private visits in a private jet and made the State pay by calling them “official visit.” By the way, 87-year-old Beniwal was removed from Governorship with barely four months left for her term by the then President Pranab Mukherjee on corruption charges.

Yes, Raj Bhavans have housed the oldest of our leaders, unfortunately, not the tallest. So why are we, the tax-payers, paying for these cunning, manipulative geriatrics when all they have done is make us poorer and our democracy weaker?

Our contemporary history is full of instances of high-handed Governors, appointed by a Union government, turning against popular leaders in the State and destabilising it.

In 1982, Haryana had a Hung-Assembly and Governor G.D. Tapase invited a few MLAs who were defectors and made them join Congress, which then, despite being a minority party formed the government with Bhajan Lal as CM. But interestingly just the previous day Devi Lal had proven majority to him!

In 1984, Congressman and Andhra Governor Ram Lal dismissed N.T. Rama Rao and installed Nadendla Bhaskara Rao as Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh for 31 days! In 1997, Romesh Bhandari too tried to snatch away Kalyan Singh’s chance of forming a government in UP. This sort of manifestation of a Governor’s discretion has happened in our State too.

But worse of them all has to be ‘Testosterone Tiwari,’ or officially known as N.D. Tiwari, who as a Governor was caught on camera with three reluctant young women rubbing the 83-year-old all over. Congress did nothing, nor did the Women’s Commission. But, what about the law? Well, he was the Governor, so law couldn’t touch him, while he made the young women touch him all over. So, with him Governorship was reduced to not just a ‘safe house’ for the corrupt but also for a pervert.

When Prime Minister Modi came to power he said he believed in ‘minimum government and maximum governance’ and some of us thought he will get rid of this Governorship, an appendix in the Indian democracy, but alas. Guess, Raj Bhavan too has become Marg Darshak Mandal…showing marg only to the Centre.

No wonder the Modi government appointed Ram Naik, 84, a Union Minister in Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s regime as the UP Governor. BJP’s veteran Delhi leader, Om Prakash Kohli, 82, was made Gujarat Governor and Founder-Member of Jan Sangh, Balramji Dass Tandon, 91, as Chhattisgarh Governor.

The 1983 Justice Sarkaria Commission had recommended that “a Governor be a person of eminence, not involved in the local politics of the State to which he or she is sent, and not a politician associated with the ruling party at the Centre, in order to preserve the federal balance.” But why will a Governor care for India’s federal structure when he has got the position by caring more for his party than his country?

This begs the question, is it time to retire these retirement homes as Raj Bhavans have turned into ‘Rajakiya Bhavans’ (house of political mischief)?

May be we can get rid of this ceremonial position and let the President handle the responsibility of inviting the political party to form the government and the swearing-in ceremony thereafter. The State’s Higher Education Minister can take the responsibility of the Universities, after all, he is already the Pro-Chancellor.

Thus we can turn the grand retirement homes into museums, art galleries and music centres. At least, the government will earn some money instead of losing money. Will this government do it? Nah! Every government needs an old age home, which is a fulcrum to tilt power.

P.S.: The only qualification to be appointed a Governor is to be an Indian citizen and should have completed 38 years of age. So if the newly-rejuvenated ‘Third Front’ that came together at Kumaraswamy’s oath-taking ceremony manages to collectively beat Modi in 2019 and if Congress does not contribute enough seats, may be they can relegate the self-declared PM candidate Rahul Gandhi to Governorship of Delhi? Just like BJP relegated L.K. Advani to Marg Darshak Mandal?

Also, knowing H.D. Deve Gowda’s family’s political machinations and good luck, Kumaraswamy may very well become the ‘accidental’ PM like his father.  After all, politics is the art of possibilities.

e-mail: vikram@starofmysore.com

The post Retire the Rajakiya Bhavans appeared first on Star of Mysore.

Bengaluru: Janata Dal State President H.D. Kumaraswamy (HDK) yesterday took oath as the 25th Chief Minister against the imposing backdrop of Vidhana Soudha in the presence of more than a dozen non-BJP leaders from across the country.

Kumaraswamy was administered the oath of office and secrecy at 4.30 pm by Governor Vajubhai Vala at a grand ceremony in the presence of a galaxy of national and regional leaders from across the country. This is Kumaraswamy’s second stint as Chief Minister, the first also being in a coalition set up when the JD(S) had allied with (and later deserted) the BJP in 2006.

Senior Congress leader Dr. G. Parameshwara was sworn as Kumaraswamy’s Deputy by Governor Vala. Other members of the Council of Ministers in the alliance will be inducted after Kumaraswamy proves his majority on the floor of the Assembly on May 25 (tomorrow).

Attired in the traditional white silk shirt and dhoti, Kumaraswamy took the oath in the name of God and the people of “Kannada Nadu”. Kumaraswamy, who had patched up with the Congress at the last minute last week to block the BJP, had been keen to turn the event into a springboard for opposition unity that his party would hold till next year’s Lok Sabha elections.

UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi and son Congress President Rahul Gandhi, who were seen to have bent backwards to give Kumaraswamy the lead role in the government, were there. So were Chief Ministers Mamata Banerjee (West Bengal), Arvind Kejriwal (Delhi) and N. Chandrababu Naidu (Andhra Pradesh) along with Samajwadi Party’s Akhilesh Yadav and Mayawati of the Bahuja Samaj Party.

Other dignitaries who attended the ceremony included Ajit Singh of Rashtriya Lok Dal, Sitaram Yechury of Communist Party of India and Tejashwi Yadav, son of former Bihar Chief Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav of the Rashtriya Janata Dal.

The JD(S)-Congress alliance leaders had brought its legislators to the venue since they have been isolated in city hotels to ensure they are not poached before the test of strength in the Assembly. All MLAs who were confined at luxury hotels in Bengaluru were brought in three buses. Soon after the event was over, the legislators were promptly bundled back into the buses. The party has decided to keep the legislators confined until after the coalition government proves its majority.

National leaders of other parties were personally greeted by former Prime Minister and Kumaraswamy’s father H.D. Deve Gowda who is also the JD(S) supremo. Deve Gowda was seen moving briskly across the stage to greet the leaders cutting across party lines. He seemed to take a liking to former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav whom he hugged and patted him on the back.

The event was high on symbolism. The swearing-in ceremony was the first joint public appearance by Uttar Pradesh’s bitter rivals-turned-allies, Akhilesh Yadav and Dalit powerhouse Mayawati shared the stage. Akhilesh Yadav warmly greeted her and later, stood next to her, waving to the cheering crowds. Mayawati, who has promised to continue her alliance for next year’s Lok Sabha elections, had a pre-poll alliance with JD(S) in Karnataka.

The many photo-ops and the bonhomie among the parties on stage, however, is no indicator that other rival non-BJP parties too will come together. West Bengal’s Mamata Banerjee and CPM’s Sitaram Yechury were there and at one awkward moment, even came face to face. They politely greeted each other, shook hands and walked away.

The entire Gowda clan was on the grand steps of the Vidhana Soudha to witness the oath-taking. The family, including Kumaraswamy’s brothers and the younger generation comprising Prajwal Revanna and Nikhil Kumaraswamy.

Congress leader D.K. Shivakumar, CPI leader D. Raja, Puducherry CM Narayanasamy, NCP Chief Sharad Pawar, Sonia Gandhi, BSP Supremo Mayawati, RLD leader Ajit Singh, AICC President Rahul Gandhi, CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury, Karnataka Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy, RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav and SP leader Akhilesh Yadav during the swearing-in ceremony.

I am a child of circumstances, says Kumaraswamy

In his maiden press conference held soon after the swearing-in ceremony, Kumaraswamy described himself as a “child of circumstances” for having emerged as the ‘king’ once again in a coalition setup. He said that his government will be “governance oriented” and will not indulge in politics.

Kumaraswamy said that in addition to continuing with the previous welfare schemes, many new programmes would be added by the coalition government headed by him. He said that though he was not “independently” running the government, he would ensure that his administration would be “pro-people”.

The election to the post of Speaker will be held at 12.15 pm on May 25 before Kumaraswamy takes the floor test. Senior leader K.R. Ramesh Kumar of the Congress and A.T. Ramaswamy of the JD(S) are tipped to occupy the post of Speaker and Deputy Speaker respectively.

The BJP boycotted the ceremony and observed an ‘anti-people mandate’ day during which it held state-wide protests against the new coalition government, which it called “unholy”

Mamata upset with traffic arrangements

The swearing-in Kumaraswamy may have been projected as a show of opposition unity ahead of the 2019 general elections, attended by a galaxy of non-BJP leaders. But West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee reportedly did not seem entirely happy with the traffic arrangements made for the gala event.

Sources said Banerjee had to walk a short distance to reach the oath-taking venue as some vehicles had blocked the route. A video that captures Banerjee entering the venue shows her gesturing her displeasure to Karnataka Director General and Inspector General of Police N. Neelamani Raju, as the Trinamool Congress Chief walked on a red carpet rolled out for the visiting dignitaries.

Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal walks, Kamal Haasan comes late

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and some leaders of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) didn’t seem to have any reservations walking to the oath-taking ceremony. AAP spokesperson Raghav Chadha, who accompanied Kejriwal, tweeted saying they chose to walk up to a kilometre to beat the traffic.

Actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan could not make it in time for the ceremony as he was caught in a traffic jam. Haasan, however, did make it for the high tea and interacted with leaders.

Governor and former CM take backseat

Governor Vajubhai Rudabhai Vala’s isolation on the crowded stage was visibly apparent. This was the second time Vala administered the oath of office and secrecy to a CM in a week. He administered the oath to BJP State President B.S. Yeddyurappa on May 17. Two days later, Yeddyurappa resigned.

Even former Chief Minister Siddharamaiah was forced to take a backseat. Though it was a Congress-supported JD(S) government, Siddharamaiah, who led the Congress campaign, was found mostly remained seated even amid the flurry of activities.

The post HDK takes oath as 25th CM appeared first on Star of Mysore.

By N.K.A. Ballal, Retd. Sr. Vice-President, ITDC

A  very old saying, “The enemy of my enemy is my friend.” But this is not true in politics. BJP learnt this the hard way.  With 104 seats in a 222 seat Assembly, they had to concede defeat and sit in the opposition. For another five years. It was pathetic to see  Yeddyurappa, already 75-year plus, almost weeping at the lost opportunity. Let us now analyse the real reasons for this defeat.

Going soft on JD(S): The think-tanks of BJP went overboard on going soft on the JD(S). They put up weak candidates opposite all the major leaders and important seats like Chamundeshwari deliberately hoping that the JD(S) will eventually win and would be grateful to the BJP. Even the tenor of the speeches of the Prime Minister was soft on JD(S) leaders. But they forgot about another wily fox, the tall Vokkaliga leader from Congress D.K. Shivakumar (DKS), an ambitious leader who has his sight on the cm-gaddi. He anticipated in advance that Congress was not going to make it unlike his CM colleague Siddharamaiah who went about the campaign saying that his party, Congress, would come back to power. Siddharamaiah did not anticipate the undercurrent of anti-incumbency in the State. So DKS opened up a back-door line with H.D. Kumaraswamy and ensured that Kumaraswamy would win in both the seats he had contested.

It is an open secret that once the election results were out, Kumaraswamy would resign one of his seats in favour of his wife Anitha. A lovely family affair, orchestrated by dks. The BJP, blissfully unaware of all this, went about trying to please JD(S) thinking that they could depend on JD(S) for support in case required.

Modi even went to the extent of saying in a public speech how he received Deve Gowda whenever he visited him in Delhi by opening Gowda’s car door and going up to his car while sending Gowda after the visit.

The Congress had learnt its lessons well after having been outsmarted in Goa and Manipur. By 12 noon, when the results were being read out, the Congress leaders realised that the results were in favour of BJP. Without waiting for the final outcome, they threw their weight behind the JD(S), giving an unconditional support. So the king-maker became the king.

As far as Congress was concerned, BJP was enemy No. 1 and taking the national view it was important to keep them out of power. And they succeeded.  Having lost the race in the current  State elections, they saw a brilliant opportunity to cobble up a good alliance to keep BJP out of power in the 2019 elections.

Chandrababu Naidu and Telugu votes: Why did Modi renege on his promise in the Parliament to give “special status” to Andhra Pradesh, is still a mystery. I have met a few Andhra people and they are boiling mad. The way Naidu has been humiliated is also not going well with the people of Andhra Pradesh. This anger has affected all the seats bordering Andhra Pradesh for BJP.

Keeping Vijayendra out of Varuna: It is rumoured that a tall Lingayat religious leader intervened in this and requested Yeddy to ask his son to step down from Varuna as a candidate. A bad decision. Vijayendra was winning and he would have made a mark in some districts surrounding Varuna too, for BJP.

BJP unsure about Yeddy: The top brass of the BJP were unsure about using Yeddy. Though they had declared Yeddy as cm candidate, they were not sure how he could carry on the campaign considering his age. He was not called for all the PM’s election meetings. Yeddy’s internal bickering with Ananth Kumar is well-known and this resulted in some weak candidates getting tickets.

One cannot pin-point a single reason for the defeat of BJP but a combination of all the above resulted in the BJP not able to cross the half-way mark. What is the lesson BJP has to learn from this important election?

Firstly, just Modi-Shah combination alone is not enough to win elections for BJP anymore. They require some local and regional satraps too.

Secondly, it is time they start re-negotiating with their allies to ensure that they are still with nda. In Uttar Pradesh, to expect the BJP to win 70 seats is unrealistic considering that Akhilesh, Mayawati and now Congress are going to come together. A Congress-JD(S) combination in Karnataka is going to give a tough fight to the BJP. A Congress-NCP-Mayawati combination in Maharashtra too would give a tough fight to BJP sans the Shiv Sena, another ally who is ready to desert the ship. As far as Congress is concerned, they do not mind playing second fiddle to any party, to defeat the main enemy, the BJP. Imagine a Karnataka-like situation, BJP gets about 180 to 200 seats but with no allies, they will have to sit in the opposition!

There is an old saying when two cats fight, the mouse is happy. Kumaraswamy is a happy man. With just 37 seats, he is sitting pretty in cm’s gaddi and may be hoping that in the next general elections if he manages to get about 15 MP seats, he might become pm too like his father!

[ananthballal@gmail.com]

The post How did Bjp manage to lose Karnataka? appeared first on Star of Mysore.

By R.P. Jagadeesh, Senior Journalist

In the midst of the “Snake and Ladder” game being played between Karnataka Congress and JD(S), the beloved son of H.D. Deve Gowda, the JD(S) Supremo, H.D. Kumaraswamy, would be crowned as the 25th Chief Minister of Karnataka to herald the ‘Era of Kumara’ — Kumara Parva — this evening.

With an unshakable belief that his son is unlike the sons of others, H.D. Deve Gowda has invited all the political giants from all corners of this vast country and is in a hurry to see the coronation of his son in their august presence.

Whatever the ecstasy of Deve Gowda, the shadow of fear about the possible future political turbulence is perceptible as we see the political demands, bargaining and even bickerings between the Congress and the JD(S) since the day the coalition was forged.

In this politically polluted atmosphere, despite this being a coalition Government, the JD(S) Supremo had issued a stern direction that this evening only his son Kumaranna would take oath. And like an obedient son Kumaraswamy agreed.

However, at the last moment the Congress has decided to allow G. Parameshwara to take oath, along with Kumaraswamy, as the Deputy Chief Minister. Surprisingly, Deve Gowda could not object.

Deve Gowda thought if his son took the oath alone, he would shine like the sparkling star among the distinguished national leaders whom he had invited. In the meanwhile, if many took oath as Ministers along with Kumaraswamy, it might result in bad omen leading to the displeasure of many Ministerial aspirants and worse, leading to great difficulty in proving the majority in the Assembly. This was Deve Gowda’s fear.

It is natural for any father to seek the success and glory of his son. It is pointless to find fault in this kind of parental sentiment. However, the bitter truth is the inevitability for the Congress party, with a history of 130 years, to capture power in Karnataka at any cost, by any means and even by hook or crook.

Congress appears worried about losing power in State after State. Of the 30 States, it has power only in Punjab, Pondicherry and a few as partners. Now its dream of winning this election to save Karnataka for itself has also failed.  Therefore, keeping in view the ensuing 2019 Lok Sabha election, Congress thinks it would be to its electoral advantage to keep party’s presence in the power-corridor of Karnataka, hence this unholy or self-deprecating alliance with JD(S) with much less number of MLAs than itself.

Therefore, the Congress High Command has meekly surrendered to JD(S) offering party’s unconditional support and making its MLAs prostrate before Deve Gowda in a most helpless, humbling manner saying, “Mr. Deve Gowda, do whatever you like with them.”

For Congress, forming this coalition Government in Karnataka is like getting oxygen. In the likely event of being swept away from power in the face of Modi-Shah tsunami, the present coalition with JD(S) is like a life-jacket that a drowning person clutches on!

“Let us first make use of the best opportunity we have to save ourselves by joining JD(S) Government, we will decide the future later” seems to be the thinking of the Congress party.

The thinking of the Congress High Command might have also run on these lines — ‘Suppose no coalition is made with JD(S) and then the JD(S) forms the Government with the help of BJP, where would Congress be in Karnataka? As it is, there is an on-going plan to form a Third Front by all regional and other opposition parties to put a brake to Modi-Shah Juggernaut.’ This might be the scheming of AICC former President Sonia Gandhi and the present President Rahul Gandhi.

The Congress party is in such a pathetic situation in Karnataka today, it seems to hold the view, no matter whatever condition JD(S) puts forward, it is in a hurry to put JD(S) in the seat of power in Karnataka. Congress High Command has asked State Congressmen not to go to Delhi till the coalition Government passes the trust vote, for fear of something going wrong. Which was why HDK went to Delhi alone and met Sonia and Rahul Gandhi.

It is the law of nature that the minority would always support the majority. Like a weak person kowtowing to a strong person. But here the Congress with a majority of 78 MLAs has in a servile manner surrendered to JD(S) with a mere 37 MLAs. This has angered many Congress MLAs. But it is not possible for them to express their disappointment. They consider JD(S) as the usurper of power, but afraid to express their opinion before the Congress High Command. It could be that these enraged MLAs do not want to hurt the mother and son who are already hurt and hence surrendered themselves to absolute silence.

Hereafter, there would be two High Commands for the State Congress — At Delhi Mother-son and in the State Father-son.

This evening these Congress MLAs might be witness to the oath-taking ceremony in an atmosphere of humiliation like the prisoners of war, but when will they be released from the confinement of 5-Star hotels? It is to be seen if this “imprisonment” would continue for another 24 hours till the trust-vote is taken.

Compliments to D.K. Shivakumar, the Congress honcho, who despite difficulties, displaying warrior-like quality, this time too has succeeded in keeping the 78 MLAs in ‘safe custody’ to prevent possible horse-trading and poaching. But should he be kept out of the Ministry under the pretext of there being a CBI inquiry against him, there is a danger of him revolting. He is not the one to keep quiet whenever his self-esteem is hurt or questioned.

Now, imagine the feeling and the mindset of Siddharamaiah who for the last five years ruled Karnataka in an autocratic manner like a despotic king. On the one hand, the pain of facing defeat in front of the father and son — H.D. Deve Gowda and H.D. Kumaraswamy. On the other hand, he is unable to digest the humiliating decision of the High Command and worse being pushed to a dark corner. These are ‘tall people’. VIPs. Because it is raining outside, Congress invited JD(S) to its tent. But like the proverbial Arab and the Camel story, what happens if JD(S) nudges out Congress from its tent, Karnataka, for good in this political rivalry? There is a lingering fear of this kind in Congress High Command as this coalition Government is formed.

Thus, there is absolutely no doubt that in this coalition Government the total advantage is for JD(S) and total loss is for Congress. Being a National Party, Congress should have taken on another National Party BJP head-on. Instead, it seems to have committed a political harakiri in Karnataka.

Incidentally, the conduct of some senior State IAS and IPS Officers who had gone to H.D. Deve Gowda’s house to offer respect by ‘kneeling’ before him seems reprehensible indeed; that too even before his son had taken oath as Chief Minister. Was it necessary to seek his guidance? What kind of culture is this? Is this not a  sign of slavery?

[Translated from Kannada by K.B. Ganapathy]

e-mail: voice@starofmysore.com

The post ‘Koronation’ of King Kumaranna appeared first on Star of Mysore.

Bengaluru: JD(S) State President H.D. Kumaraswamy (HDK) will take oath as Chief Minister of Karnataka tomorrow (May 23) at 4.30 pm on the steps of Vidhana Soudha, the State Secretariat. Governor Vajubhai R. Vala will administer the oath of office and secrecy to Kumaraswamy.

The swearing-in ceremony is all set to be a show of strength by the opposition as leaders from 22 States are expected to be present. Five Chief Ministers — Mamata Banerjee (West Bengal), Pinarayi Vijayan (Kerala), N. Chandrababu Naidu (Andhra Pradesh), K. Chandrashekhar Rao (Telangana) and Arvind Kejriwal (Delhi) — are expected to attend the grand event.

Among others, CPI(M) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury, who took a lead role in cementing ties between the Congress and JD(S), Tejashwi Yadav, son of RJD Chief Lalu Prasad Yadav, actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan, DMK Chief M.K. Stalin are also likely to attend the swearing in ceremony. Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) Chief Mayawati, CPI’s Sudhakar Reddy and D. Raja are also expected to attend.

HDK will be sworn-in as Chief Minister for the second time in 12 years and the JD(S)-Congress combine will be returning to power in Karnataka after more than a decade as in 2006, the JD(S) had walked out of the alliance and joined hands with the BJP.

Soudha steps all set for coronation

The swearing-in ceremony will be held on the flight of stairs of the Vidhana Soudha and a huge stage is being erected for the purpose. According to sources, a special silk shirt and dhoti have been purchased for Kumaraswamy. He will be taking oath bare-footed following advice by astrologers.

A puja was held in front of Vidhana Soudha by a priest before the stage was erected yesterday. Arrangements have been made to accommodate one lakh chairs on the road between Vidhana Soudha and High Court. There will be a separate enclosure with 3,000 seats for VIPs. Prior to the oath-taking, HDK will offer worship at Chamundeshwari temple atop the Hill in Mysuru tomorrow morning.

The post Bare-foot Oath ! appeared first on Star of Mysore.

New Delhi:  Fast-pacing the process of Cabinet formation in Karnataka, the Chief Minister-designate H.D. Kumaraswamy (HDK) yesterday met Congress President Rahul Gandhi and his mother and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi and got their clearance. Kumaraswamy touched Sonia Gandhi’s feet in a gesture of gratitude for supporting the JD(S).

Kumaraswamy said that both Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi will attend the swearing-in ceremony tomorrow. At the meeting with the Gandhis, though the leaders did not go into the nitty-gritty of government formation, Rahul asked Kumaraswamy to leave the post of the Speaker for the Congress. Kumaraswamy gave his consent.

“I wanted to show my respect and regards to Gandhi family. I requested them for attending the oath-taking ceremony on Wednesday. Both of them agreed to be present,” Kumaraswamy said. He further said: “It was a good meeting. Rahul cleared the initial modalities and asked Venugopal to discuss all the concerned matters,” he said.

After interacting with Kumaraswamy, Congress President Rahul Gandhi tweeted, “I had a warm and cordial meeting this evening, in Delhi, with Kumaraswamy. We discussed the political situation in  Karnataka and other matters of mutual interest.”

“I will be attending his swearing-in as the CM of Karnataka, on Wednesday, in Bengaluru,” Gandhi wrote in the micro blogging site confirming his attendance at the oath-taking ceremony.

Earlier in the day, Kumaraswamy also met BSP Supremo Mayawati in Delhi as her party is a pre-poll alliance partner with JD(S).

No differences of opinion: HDK

In Hassan, Kumaraswamy said that his party, the JD(S), had no differences of opinion with coalition partner Congress over distribution of portfolios. “The issue is created by a section of the media. I have been following the hate messages spreading on social media. I will give them an answer in a few days,” he said.

He was speaking to reporters before visiting several temples in his home district and offering special puja to the deities, along with his family members. “Managing the Chief Minister’s post is a challenge. I will discuss the issues with the leaders about the functioning of the Government. I will resolve the people’s problems,” Kumaraswamy said.

He said, he will take all Congress leaders into confidence to ensure a stable Government.

Responding to BJP MLA B. Sriramulu’s statement that he will give sleepless nights to JD(S) and Congress leaders, Kumaraswamy said, “Neither Sriramulu, nor BJP, can take away our sleep. I will make them spend sleepless nights,”  Kumaraswamy said.

The post HDK meets Rahul, Sonia, Mayawati; discusses Government formation appeared first on Star of Mysore.

By T.J.S. George

Here is what the Buddha said about Karnataka elections:

“There are many difficulties to overcome in this world. It is hard for a proud man to learn the way of enlightenment.  It is hard not to argue about right and wrong.  It is hard to find a good method.  It is hard to keep the mind pure against the instincts of the body.  It is hard not to desire beautiful things.  It is hard for a strong man not to use his strength to satisfy his desires.”

The Strong Man heading The Strong Party used all his strength to make things move his way.  There were serial IT raids on “Congress moneybags,” even a last-minute raid on a resort in Badami where Congressmen heading Siddharamaiah’s campaign were lodged.  The Central Government’s partisan role reached an absurd limit when Congress MLAs headed for Kochi found that civil aviation authorities would not permit their flight to take off.  How childish can arrogance get.

Misuse of power is a badge of the arrogant.  Here is what the Vishnu Purana said about Karnataka elections:

“And then there will be a decline in prosperity and dharma and the whole earth shall slowly perish.  The one who has wealth shall rule.  The one who wears a false mask shall be honoured.  The one who is greedy shall be king.  And weary of misrule, the people shall hide in dark caves and wait for their days of  misery to end.”

The ones who had wealth have been ruling in solitary splendour since the demonetisation of the beloved rupee. It enabled them to wear a false mask and win honours.  They became kings who ruled over the dispensers of justice as well.  But the men of justice, reared in a different kind of discipline, had a tendency to show their mettle now and again.

It was left to them to expose Karnataka’s RSS Governor.  The man had ignored his oath to the Constitution and given the BJP, the party without a majority, an unheard-of 15 days to purchase a majority.  That was 15 days to buy and sell horses; 15 days for Central Government agencies to raid and intimidate MLAs; 15 days to flaunt Rs.100-crore baits (or was it 200 crore?)  The farce decreed by the gubernotorious swayam sevak made the men of justice go into action.  They decreed that the party with no majority must test the floor in two days instead of 15.  That turned out to be the decisive factor in what was becoming a travesty of electoral democracy in Karnataka; it stopped the politicians from playing a cheating game.

There were missing MLAs, absconding MLAs, double-crossing MLAs. And then there were MLAs who were discovered, MLAs who were retrieved, MLAs who were captured.  Here is what Kautilya said about Karnataka elections:

“Just as fish moving inside water cannot be seen drinking water, so officers of the State [politicians] cannot be seen appropriating money.  It is possible to know the paths of birds in the sky, but not the ways of [politicians] with their intentions concealed.  A wise king should guard others from others, his own people from his own people, his own people from others, and others from his own people, and always guard himself from his own people and from others.”

Now that people are kings, how do we guard ourselves from our own people and from others?  Some imperatives arise from factors which now stand proved by the dramatic twists in Karnataka.

1. The BJP juggernaut is not unstoppable.
2. The juggernaut needs to be stopped because it is splitting people along communal lines and institutionalising a culture of everyday violence in the name of what people should eat, say, study and think. India is too diverse a society to survive as a monolithic entity.
3. The Congress has neither the leadership nor the infrastructure to stand on its own legs.
4. A combination of regional parties and the Congress is the way forward. The Congress-JD(S) union that has gained traction in Karnataka must expand and multiply across the country, with common development programmes that will avoid politics of hatred and intimidation.
5. And for starters, can we bring the institutions that have sustained our democracy back to their wonted glory — the judiciary, the civil service, the CBI, the Election Commission?

Steps like these would start giving hope to the people hiding in dark caves waiting for their days of misery to end.

Meanwhile, Jai Hind!

tjsoffice@epmltd.com

www.tjsgeorge.info

The post No 15 days to purchase majority! appeared first on Star of Mysore.

Bengaluru:  After successfully stitching up a post-poll tie up with JD(S) to oust the B.S. Yeddyurappa (BSY) Government, the Congress now seems to be in a dilemma over the Deputy Chief Minister’s (Dy.CM) post.

Soon after the Congress-JD(S) tie up, speculations were rife that KPCC President Dr. G. Parameshwara will become the Dy.CM. But now as there are too many aspirants for the post, the Congress is said to be working out a formula to have two Dy.CMs. While the Veerashaiva-Lingayat lobby is working overtime to have one of its senior MLA as Dy.CM, another group is said to be backing D.K. Shivakumar, who played a key role in keeping the Congress flock intact ahead of BSY’s Floor Test held on Saturday.

With the Veerashaiva-Lingayat Community said to be peeved over Lingayat leader BSY being prevented from occupying the CM’s post, the Congress is said to be ruling on appointing a Veerashaiva-Lingayat senior MLA as the Dy.CM.

However, lobbying has intensified among community leaders with former Minister M.B. Patil, senior Legislators S.R. Patil and H.K. Patil, vying with each other for the plum post.

Meanwhile, the Akhila Bharatiya Veerashaiva Mahasabha has urged CM-designate H.D. Kumaraswamy to make senior most MLA from Davanagere Shymanuru Shivashankarappa as the Dy.CM.

Even as lobbying is picking up for the Dy.CM’s post, Dr. Parameshwara and former CM Siddharamaiah have said it is the party High Command which will take a final call on the issue.

The post Congress in a dilemma over Dy.CM post appeared first on Star of Mysore.

He is scheduled to take oath at Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru on May 23. Sources in Bengaluru told Star of Mysore that he will take oath between 12 noon and 1.50 pm on that day.

Kumaraswamy’s day began today with a meeting with Chief Secretary K. Ratna Prabha and Director General and Inspector General of Police Neelamani N. Raju at his J.P. Nagar residence. He directed them to make proper arrangements as over three lakh people are expected to witness the grand event. Later, Kumaraswamy drove to Hotel Le Meridian near the Race Course and addressed a meeting of the newly-elected MLAs.

Speaking to reporters, Kumaraswamy said that he will leave to New Delhi tomorrow to meet Congress President Rahul Gandhi and his mother Sonia Gandhi to invite them for the swearing-in ceremony. “Tomorrow morning, I am going to Delhi and I want to meet Sonia Gandhi and Rahul. Just 24 hours after the oath, I will prove the majority,” Kumaraswamy said. He added that there will be no rotational Chief Ministership arrangement with Congress.

After addressing the party workers, Kumaraswamy will leave for Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple at Tiruchirapalli in Tamil Nadu along with his bother H.D. Revanna. Both the brothers are likely to visit a temple in Kerala and return to Bengaluru tonight.

Kumaraswamy’s swearing-in  is likely to serve as a show of opposition for non-BJP leaders across the country. The Congress and JD(S) alliance aims to project the win as massive victory with Opposition leaders like Mamata Banerjee (Trinamool Congress), Mayawati (Bahujan Samaj Party), Akhilesh Yadav (Samajwadi Party), N. Chandrababu Naidu (Telugu Desam), K. Chandrashekar Rao (Telangana Rashtriya Samithi) and others expected to attend.

After meeting Sonia and Rahul in New Delhi tomorrow, Kumaraswamy is likely to fly to Lucknow to invite Akhilesh Yadav and Mayawati to his swearing-in ceremony.

Coordination Committee: The post-election alliance of the JD(S) and Congress has 117 lawmakers. Kumaraswamy, who faces a delicate balancing act in allocating portfolios in his coalition government, may keep the finance portfolio with himself. People familiar with the matter said Congress leader Dr. G. Parameshwara is likely to become the Deputy Chief Minister and Home Minister.

Alliance sources said that a coordination committee would be formed to prepare a common minimum programme to implement the promises made by the two coalition partners.

Parleys between Congress and JD(S) have already started over the composition of the new dispensation. They are to work out the modalities, including formation of a coordination committee. Senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad is coordinating the discussions between the leaders of the JD(S) and the Congress, to hammer out finer details of the alliance, including the number of Ministers from each party.

With the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) having a pre-poll alliance with the JD(S), the lone BSP MLA N. Mahesh (Kollegal) is likely to get a berth. On his brother and former Minister H.D. Revanna being a part of the government, Kumaraswamy said, “Our party will decide on those who will be taken as Ministers and the Congress will draw its list.”

Siddharamaiah to be a part of coordination committee

Sources said that former CM Siddharamaiah may play a key role in the Congress as the party, it is said, wants to leverage his “regional leader” status to its advantage.  Siddharamaiah, the 69-year-old leader from the Kuruba community, became the first CM in four decades to complete a full five-year term.

The post Hectic Sunday for new CM appeared first on Star of Mysore.