SHIVAMOGGA: With the Shivamogga parliamentary bypoll inching ever so closer, all the three major parties have seemingly turned in to cash in on the legacy of one political stalwart whose name still resonates in the district.
Former chief minister late S Bangarappa, a colourful politician and a mass leader, has now taken the centre-stage in the poll calculations of BJP and coalition partners Congress and JD(S).
Even seven years after his demise, Bangarappa remains an alluring figure among the political leaders of the three parties in the district. This can be partly attributed to the fact that in his political life, Bangarappa was associated with all these parties and their leaders.
He had been with the Congress on and off, was in the BJP for a brief stint, and later joined the Samajwadi Party. His last political association was with JD(S). So, leaders of the three political parties are now trying to appropriate Bangarappa as their own.
On Tuesday, BJP MLA Haratalu Halappa, who claims that S Bangarappa was his political guru, said, “When (JD-S) patriarch) H D Deve Gowda became PM in 1996, he had all the opportunity to make Bangarappa a Union minister. But Deve Gowda did not consider to give a berth to Bangarappa in his ministry. Bangarappa himself told me about this several times.”
Now these JD(S) people were speaking highly about Bangarappa and using his name while campaigning for Madhu Bangarappa, he added. He said JD(S) leaders have to “stop shedding crocodile tears over Bangarappa”.Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy appealed to the people to vote for Madhu Bangarappa. “It is time to pay their tribute to S Bangarappa by voting for Madhu in this byelection,” he added.
JD(S) supremo H D Deve Gowda also said, “Bangarappa joined JD(S), but unfortunately we could not have him for more time. His son Madhu Bangarappa continued his association with JD(S) and became MLA.” It was senior Congress leader Kagodu Thimmappa who fielded Madhu Bangarappa as the consensus candidate of both JD(S) and Congress.
Some Congress leaders said, “When S Bangarappa was in Congress, Kagodu maintained a distance with him. He never joined hands with Bangarappa in the district. If they would have worked together, then in the late 80s and early 90s, they could have resolved the bagair hukum issue. Now, by fielding Madhu Bangarappa, Kagodu exhibited his soft attitude towards S Bangarappa.”
When S Bangarappa joined the BJP in 2004, it was a turning point for the district unit as it brought the party support from the Eediga community. Bangarappa’s disciples, Haratalu Halappa and Beluru Gopalakrishna, who became MLAs from the BJP, did not move with Bangarappa when he quit the party in 2005.
This was how the BJP could retain the support of the Eediga community with these two leaders remaining in the party. Now, Kumar Bangarappa too in the BJP camp. Now, it would be difficult for the coalition partners to get the “wholehearted support of the Eedigas’ in this byelection.