MYSURU: He had hoped to be the hero of a political thriller with many twists and turns, but Adaguru H Vishwanath ended up as a tragic hero. The man who penned part of the script to bring down the Congress-JDS coalition government, and bring B S Yediyurappa to power as Chief Minister, now stands alone. He missed his second chance at entering the powerhouse through the Legislative Council.Vishwanath’s chequered four-decade political career is one of the most colourful, tinted as it is by all parties. Coming from the D Devaraj Urs school of thought, he rubbed shoulders with S M Krishna, Siddaramaiah, H D Deve Gowda, and now B S Yediyurappa. Yet, ‘Halli Hakki’ Vishwanath retains his own charm.
The poet-politician may not have imagined that his own political story could reach such a turn — while all his associates who were part of the July 2019 coup have been rewarded, he has been left out in the cold. At 67, used and abandoned, Vishwanath could be staring at the end of his political career unless Yediyurappa yet again comes up with a masterstroke to change his fortunes.
Vishwanath, a born Congressman, served in various capacities as part of the team that brought another backward class leader, Siddaramaiah, to the Congress. He fell out of his good books soon after he lost the parliamentary election to BJP in Mysuru. He accused Siddaramaiah of cornering him in the party and joining hands with his once political bete noir Deve Gowda.
Hoping for a respectable exit from politics, he contested on a JDS ticket from Hunsur assembly constituency, and won. He was denied a ministerial berth but was elevated as State JDS president. Unhappy with H D Kumaraswamy for not taking him into confidence, Vishwanath put the leadership in an awkward position by joining 16 rebels to bring down the alliance government.With the help of his friend and BJP MP V Srinivasa Prasad, he scripted the fall of the government and proceeded to Mumbai to join the rebel camp. Vishwanath and team also knocked on the Supreme Court doors, and got relief to contest the by-elections.
Although the BJP leadership advised Vishwanath not to contest from Hunsur as they wanted to field cine star-turned-politician C P Yogeshwar, the Kuruba leader managed to prevail on the party for the ticket. His downfall started after he lost the bypoll by a margin of 30,000 votes, and started lobbying to get into the Upper House.
Yediyurappa, known for standing by his word, recommended migrant leaders MTB Nagaraj, Vishwanath and R Shankar for the legislative council membership. He knew that Vishwanath would be the face and voice of backward communities in the government, but had to follow the high command’s directions and drop Vishwanath.Prasad is of the view that Yediyurappa should protect the interests of Vishwanath, who kept the flock together to bring in a change of guard in Karnataka.
‘Have been let down but have faith in BSY’
Mysuru: “I have been let down, but I am confident that I will get my reward for my sacrifice. I still trust Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa,” said Adagur H Vishwanath, who was denied a BJP ticket for the Legislative Council election. Vishwanath had camped in Bengaluru to file his nomination papers. He told TNIE that the BJP core committee had recommended his name.
“I don’t know what transpired but my name was dropped. I don’t know the depth of the BJP, but many have swum to shore. I failed to make it being from a backward community,” he added. However, Vishwanath said he has not given up hope. He criticised Siddaramaiah, HD Revanna, Sa Ra Mahesh and others, but did not utter a word against Yediyurappa or the BJP. Meanwhile, the 17 MLAs who left the Congress-JDS alliance and joined the BJP called him and expressed grave concern.