Exuding confidence that the Opposition alliance will come together after victory in the elections, JD(S) patriarch and one of the architects of the opposition 'mahagathbandhan' , H.D. Deve Gowda says the BJP’s references to ‘mahamilavat’ reveal its desperation.
Do you think the air strike post Pulwama terror attack and ASAT test have shifted the poll narrative to security and nationalism and, therefore, in favour of BJP?
Exploiting the achievements of the Indian Army or Indian scientists is a heinous crime. No prime minister of independent India has claimed credit for such feats in the past. During the India-Pakistan conflict, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi conducted herself with remarkable dignity. Atal Bihari Vajapayee carried out India’s second nuclear test at Pokhran and brought Pakistan to its knees in the decisive Kargil war. But never did they claim credit the way Mr. Modi is doing now. The tone and tenor of Mr Modi does not augur well for the post he is holding.
But has it succeeded in stemming what some thought was building up to an ‘anti-Modi’ wave?
It is precisely because he is seeing this kind of a wave himself that Mr. Modi is trying to push a nationalist agenda. But people will not be carried away by theatrics. Mr Modi refuses to reply on the Rafale deal in Parliament. Does it not show people that Mr Modi has something to hide?
What is your counter narrative?
The Congress and the JD(S) in Karnataka will raise issues of unemployment, rural distress, destabilising constitutional institutions, misuse of offices of the Central Bureau of Investigation and the like. Search and seizure operation by I-T [officials] on those said to be linked to JD(S) and Congress, when polls to Lok Sabha are round the corner, is testimony to Mr Modi’s vendetta politics. No prime minister in independent India had stooped this low. We will also raise issues such as NDA government discriminating against Karnataka in releasing funds under MNREGA and drought relief. They are also creating roadblocks for farm loan waiver
BJP leaders are terming the 'm ahagathbandhan ' the ‘ Tukde-Tukde gang’, 'mahamilawat ’ etc, pointing to a lack of cohesion.
BJP primarily has no moral right to criticise the coming together of parties under a common umbrella. Have they not aligned with regional parties like All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) in Tamil Nadu or the Shiv Sena in Maharashtra? As Prime Minister, Mr. Modi should maintain a certain decorum while speaking. This language comes out of desperation.
But there are strains and opposing pulls within the formation.
It was JD(S) which initiated the process of mahagathbandhan by bringing together all anti-Modi and anti-BJP forces in the country during the oath-taking ceremony of Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister and Telugu Desam Party (TDP) leader Chandrababu Naidu tried his best to stitch an alliance between the Congress and other anti-BJP parties. But some anti-BJP parties are preparing a solo fight in their own States. This cannot be construed as tukde-tukde ( bits and pieces ) . This is nothing but an attempt by the BJP to humiliate regional parties for which they will pay a price. As far as I am concerned I will support any regional party which opposes BJP. Mr Naidu has invited me for a political rally and I will go.
Do you think people will trust the alliance as a possible national alternative, despite disappointments in the past?
Parties opposed to Mr. Modi in each State will naturally have their own plans. After the polls, they would decide on the leadership. I will also be a part of this effort in my capacity as a senior politician. I have appealed to them in the past and will appeal to them again that the most important thing is to convince people that we can give a stable government for five years. I am optimistic.
One of the biggest accusations against JD(S) is dynastic politics. Once called appa-maga (father-sons) party, now people say it is appa-maga-mommaga party (father-sons-grandsons) with the entry of your two grandsons Nikhil Kumaraswamy and Prajwal Revanna into the fray this time.
See, my father was not a politician. He was a humble farmer. My grandsons are contesting because the party wants them to. Also, interestingly, the issue of dynastic politics is highlighted only in Karnataka. Why don’t you look at DMK in neighbouring Tamil Nadu, for instance?
Given the so-called ‘trust deficit’ between the Congress and JD(S) in Karnataka, especially in the southern region where you two have been traditional rivals, do you believe the transfer of votes will happen?
There is no trust deficit as is being hyped up by the media. There are problems in pockets, of course, because of the history of animosity between the cadre of the two parties. But we are aware of the larger agenda of defeating BJP in the country. All leaders of the coalition are trying their best to fight unitedly by convincing the ground level workers. But yes, leaders of both the parties should forget the past and move forward in the new direction.
