NEW DELHI: The Congress-Janata Dal (Secular) government in Karnataka has completed 100 days in power, but the stability of the coalition would depend a lot on the commitment of the top leadership of the two parties and the camaraderie among the field commanders.
Sources said the JD-S leader has been personally assured of full support by Congress chief Rahul Gandhi. For the Congress managers, the coalition is a test case for the larger Opposition alliance that Rahul wants to build for the high-stake 2019 Lok Sabha elections. “The coalition is a must in the new political environment. The message is that the Congress and the JD-S are the only options against the BJP in Karnataka,” a senior AICC functionary told The Sunday Standard.
However, it’s the rivalry among the field commanders that seems to be testing the nerves of both sides. The reasons are many: sharing power with a party they contested against in the Assembly polls and trying to prioritise welfare schemes in consonance with the respective party manifestos, among others.
The Congress-JD-S coalition, which came into existence on May 23 with Kumaraswamy taking oath, took two weeks to decide on cabinet expansion as state Congress leaders jostled for ministerial berths.
“There were initial troubles with government formation...you can’t satisfy everybody...but there is no threat to the government ...the issues will be sorted out gradually...the leaders are doing everything to keep their flock happy,” said a Congress strategist.
Seven cabinet berths have been kept vacant, perhaps to deal with dissent within both the parties. Now, the two allies are trying hard to work out a common minimum programme at the meetings of the coordination committee formed to supervise the coalition government. “We are working on the CMP depending upon the two manifestos. We will try to cover maximum points,” said a senior Karnataka Congress leader.
State party chief Dinesh Gundurao has been added to the coordination panel, headed by former CM Siddaramaiah, to ensure its smooth functioning, given the political rivalries between the former CM and the JD-S leadership.
Despite the sticking points in the coalition, the broader message was to work together. “We fought against each other in the Assembly polls but the need of the hour is to stay together and work out the differences,” said another AICC leader.