Humiliating defeat for BJP

The verdict of Karnataka assembly elections is a moral booster for the Congress Party, which has been voted to power on its own in the state, and a humiliating defeat for the BJP that it has lost the lone southern bastion. The issue of corruption, bad-governance and instability has gone against the BJP. Former Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa had brought BJP single to power handedly for the first time in South India in 2008. But the indictment of the Karnataka Lokayukta against him for his alleged involvement in mining and land scam made the Central BJP leadership untenable to allow his continuance in office. He was sacked and there started the instability in Karnataka, and it saw three chief ministers of BJP in the last five years. Even after the sacking of Yeddyurappa, no effort was made by the BJP Central leadership to get the governance improved in the state of Karnataka through its chief ministers. Corruption, bad-governance, instability and cutting into the BJP votes by Karanataka Janata Paksha founded by BS Yeddyurappa after breaking away with the BJP have caused its humiliating defeat. Yeddyurappa has harmed the BJP very much. It is also the ire of the people of BJP government in Karanataka, which has contributed very much to the victory of Congress Party. Congress has won the assembly elections on the basis of negative voting. Neither Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi nor Congress Party Vice-President Rahul Gandhi’s factor has worker for BJP and Congress respectively. Narendra Modi is most likely to be projected by the BJP as its Prime Ministerial candidate and it is most certain in the case of Congress also for Rahul Gandhi in 2014 Lok Sabha elections. The corruption in Karnataka government weighed much more heavily on the minds of the people than the corruption charges and plethora of scandals in Congress-led Manmohan Singh UPA Government. The message for the BJP in its defeat in Karnataka is that it must act on the ground and raise voices against the corruption in Central government rather than only speaking and discussion in air- conditioned newsrooms of different TV news channels. The message for Congress is that the people of Karanataka has not given their mandate because its track record is unquestioned on the issues of corruption and bad-governance but because of that they wanted to be relieved of the corruption ridden BJP government. Karnataka verdict may give a new lease of life to the Congress but it would have to come clean on the charges of corruption before 2014 Lok Sabha elections. Otherwise, it will have to face the same fate as BJP has met in Karanataka on the issue of corruption.