The Congress in Karnataka, in a similar predicament as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), faces an uphill task in keeping its flock together to put up a united electoral fight.
Party candidates in the State have to fight a cold war within, apart from the electoral battle. It is no comfort to them that the situation is similar in the BJP.
What holds good for the Congress is that former Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa will be kept busy in the Shimoga constituency, where he is contesting, and neighbouring Udupi-Chikmagalur, where his close associate, Shobha Karandlaje, is the candidate. During the 2009 Lok Sabha election, when he was Chief Minster, the BJP won 19 of the 28 seats in the State. But it is a different game now. He is no longer in a position to influence the outcome, although he helped the Congress score a big victory in the previous Assembly elections.
Congress workers across the State are being pulled in various directions, thanks to the screening process for the selection of candidates. While some popular leaders have been given ticket, several of those who missed the bus are looking at joining other parties. One is party veteran C.K. Jaffer Sharief. An example in the BJP is former Speaker D.B. Chandre Gowda.
The discontent within may not augur well for the Congress at a time when the party high command believes the State unit will put up a splendid performance. For the party, the situation looks only a tad better than what it was in 2009, when it won six seats.
Indications are that the Congress and the BJP will have to work out a strategy to stem the growing discontent, particularly among party veterans, which could otherwise work against their candidates, more so in some key constituencies.
The next course of action likely will be finding a way to retain the senior leaders who have been denied ticket.
Admittedly, the Congress is in a better position to handle the situation given the fact that it is the ruling party in the State and consequently some of the leaders can be accommodated either in government or in related organisations.
