Anti-Deve Gowda remarks help Congress, JDS to bury the hatchet

Bengaluru-Tumakuru: The recent unpalatable remarks of Congress leader Rajannaagainst JDS leader and former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda have put him in a corner. Both his own Congress and Janata Dal-Secular workers and leaders have berated him for making reckless and crude remarks against the former PM.

This is the first time that both parties opposed to each other have stood by each other. Rajanna who is nursing a grouse against the party for not giving him a ticket to contest in the last elections had raised a voice of dissent against his own party and unleashed a barrage of unpleasantries againstDeve Gowda. Rajanna had crossed the limits of dignity to belittle the former Prime Minister.

Against this backdrop, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has 'advised' former Karnataka chief minister S Siddaramiah to keep his anti-Gowda family rhetoric to just politics and not go beyond that.

In a show of mutual respect, the JDS and Congress members held joint protests in many places in Tumakuru against Rajanna's remarks. On Saturday protests were held in Kunigal, Turuvekere and Madhugiri and leaders of both parties had wanted the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president DK Shivakumar to suspend Rajanna from the party.

Even the Congress high command has asked Shivakumar to take action against Rajanna which was conveyed to him by the Karnataka in-charge general secretary. Shivakumar on his part had already asked Rajanna to apologise to Deve Gowda and his family publicly. But Rajanna who is already over the hill of his political life has stated that "if the comments attributed to me, have hurt the Deve Gowda family I would apologise. But I am being victimised and it was a political ploy played against me. I am sad that even leaders of my party have not taken time to analyse the problem".

However, the political observers in the State foresee a 'whiter inter-party understanding between Congress and JDS for the 2023 elections and with BJP growing stronger, they feel that Congress and JDS have to co-operate with each other. The two parties which had electoral understanding in the past, cannot wait to come to an understanding for the upcoming elections to BBMP.

BBMP is one local self-government in the State where JDS and Congress have shared a great camaraderie. With the threat of the Aam Aadmi Party strengthening its position in the city and preparing for BBMP elections, Congress and JDS would do well to stick together.