BENGALURU: BS Yediyurappa, who resigned on Monday, could have continued as chief minister till August 2, but decided to put in his papers on the day he completed two years in office. He had initially planned to visit Karwar in Uttara Kannada district, where floods have caused havoc, on Monday afternoon, but chose not to, as he did not want to hang on for another week, sources close to Yediyurappa told TNIE.
Sending out a clear message to his political detractors and the party high command that he is not among those who will join the “Margdarshak Mandal”, the retirement home for party leaders who have crossed 75 years of age, Yediyurappa made it clear on Monday that he will be active in state politics and will not accept any assignment outside the State.
“I will work day and night to strengthen the party in the State to bring BJP back to power. We will start tomorrow,” he said.
“There is no question of taking up governor’s or any other position outside the State. Prime Minister Vajpayee had invited me to be part of his ministry, but I had declined as I wanted to work in the State,” Yediyurappa said. Political analyst Prof Sandeep Shastri said the BJP high command would have loved to have him posted as governor and send him away from Karnataka, but he has fought back.
Tightrope walk for BJP, says analyst
“It will be interesting to see how BJP will now calibrate the roles of new chief minister and the outgoing
one. It will be a tightrope walk for the party,” Political analyst Prof Sandeep Shastri said.Sources said that while Yediyurappa can help the party in the upcoming elections, the real challenge would be to ensure that there is no friction within the party.
Also, Yediyurappa’s decision to stay in the State should not lead to two power centres, one helmed by him and the other by the new chief minister, they added.