The Karnataka verdict: A vote for stability?

SAFFRON SOUTH: In Karnataka BJP expanded its base from just a Lingayat party and reaped rich dividends.

                

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The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Sunday created history by getting a foothold in South India. When the final results of Karnataka Assembly elections came out, the BJP had 110 seats under its belt with Congress taking the second spot with 80 seats and Janata Dal (Secular) a distant third with just 28 seats.

For a party that was primarily seen having its base in North and Western India, it's now time to be truly called a national party. In Karnataka, too, the BJP expanded its base from being a Lingayat party to include the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes and in the process, reaped rich electoral dividends.

In the SC/ST reserved constituencies, seats BJP won 33 seats compared to 13 last time with the Congress which won 37 seats in 2004 left with 34. The JD(S) was down to just eight from 26 with other getting four compared to three seats last time. As BJP leader B S Yeddyurappa gets ready to become the next chief minister of the state, CNN-IBN’s Face the Nation debated the issue: Is the Karnataka verdict a vote for stability?

The panelists included eminent historian and Bangalore resident Ramachandra Guha, Lankesh Patrike Editor and another Bangalore resident Gauri Lankesh, Member of Parliament and Editor-in-Chief Pioneer Chandan Mitra, Editor-in-Chief of Outlook Vinod Mehta and Congress spokesperson Manish Tiwari. Sagarika Ghose moderated the debate.

The first question asked was: Will the BJP be able to provide good governance?

Ramachandra Guha started the ball rolling by pointing that the BJP not having a single Muslim candidate in the elections was a cause of worry.

“That worry is always there when the BJP is in power. Out of the 224 constituencies not a single Muslim was put by the BJP. On the other hand they minimised what for them has been a very major campaign, which is to convert a multi-faith shrine in Baba Budangiri Hills into a Hindu shrine. Also soon after they won, they announced that they are going to announce special programmes for SCs, STs and minorities. So they are speaking with two voices. On one hand they recognise that in a plural heterogeneous society hardline Hindutva will not be appreciated. On the other hand the RSS hardcore might want the hardline Hindutva. So I think there is an element of confusion in the BJP. One hopes that the confusion will resolve itself in favour of more plural, democratic politics,” Guha said.