Three former ministers in the previous Bharatiya Janata Party government are in the running for the post of Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Karnataka legislative assembly—a decision that the BJP leadership has delayed
for over six months after the dismal performance of the party in the state elections.
Former ministers V Sunil Kumar (Energy, Kannada, and Culture), R Ashok (Revenue), and Dr CN Ashwath Narayan (former deputy CM) are in the race for the post in the legislative assembly, News18 has learnt.
Party insiders say that now that BY Vijayendra, a Lingayat leader, has been appointed as the BJP state president, a Vokkaliga or OBC person may be selected as the LoP to balance the caste matrix in the state.
“While there are several names doing the rounds, the BJP is firm on having a strong, vocal, non-controversial leader for the post. The need of the hour is a leader who can effectively attack the Congress,” expressed a senior BJP functionary. “The party wants to ensure a landslide victory in the Lok Sabha polls and cannot be seen distracted by battling controversies.”
The BJP is expected to finally decide who the Leader of the Opposition in the Karnataka state legislative assembly will be on November 17 during the legislature party meeting in Bengaluru.
Amid reports that several BJP MLAs were upset at being constantly ridiculed by the ruling Congress for not selecting an LoP even six months after the elections were held, former Karnataka chief minister and BJP national executive member BS Yediyurappa assured that he would urge the central leadership to make the appointment before the winter assembly session that is to begin on December 4.
Sunil Kumar, who hails from the Billava-Ediga community of coastal Karnataka, is being projected as the OBC face of the party. A senior leader in the BJP’s central leadership has been batting in favour of the Karkala MLA who comes from the RSS stables and is said to have a good hold on the cadre as well.
R Ashok and Ashwath Narayan, both strong Vokkaliga leaders, have served as deputy chief ministers of Karnataka and are front runners as well.
It is also learnt that the BJP leadership had promised BJP MLC Kota Srinivas Poojary (Billava-Ediga) the post of LoP in the Karnataka legislative council, but many state leaders have raised objections to him being given the role. Known to be an influential OBC leader who has served as a minister for social welfare and other key ministries, Poojary is facing opposition from within the party. The names of YA Narayana Swamy, a Vokkaliga and MLC elected from the teachers’ constituency, are also in the running for the post of LoP in the council.
“If an OBC leader like Sunil Kumar is selected as LoP in the legislative assembly, then the caste balance will have to be made by selecting a Vokkaliga in the legislative council. This is where Narayana Swamy hopes to gain that position,” explains political analyst SA Hemanth. “Senior BJP leader KS Eshwarappa is also pushing for a Kuruba community leader to be made LoP in the council. That brings Bidar MLC Raghunath Rao Malkapure’s name also in the fray.”
Having lost 54 seats to be reduced to just 65 MLAs, the BJP became the principal opposition party. The BJP central leadership continues to be quite annoyed with the loss, and that can be seen in the delay of appointments to crucial posts. Even after two central observers, union minister Mansukh Mandaviya and Vinod Tawde, BJP leader from Maharashtra, were sent to Karnataka in July to gather the opinion of Karnataka BJP senior leaders for their choice of names for the posts of LOP to the legislature and council. However, the decision remains pending.
The list, it is said, remains unattended as the top leadership has been deeply involved in the campaign plan in the five election-bound states of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Mizoram, and Telangana.
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