BENGALURU: The biggest loser in the Rajya Sabha election is not Kupendra Reddy, but former chief minister HD Kumaraswamy. His loss of face and anger were palpable when he protested and addressed the media after the election, in which Reddy managed to get only 36 votes.
Forest Minister Eshwar Khandre, who is also KPCC working president, said, “The JDS was dependent on the BJP to deliver a win in the Rajya Sabha election. It is obvious the BJP ditched the JDS, and did not support the JDS candidate with its extra votes. Kumaraswamy may now have realised the cost of aligning with the BJP. It shows the alliance may not last and could break before the Lok Sabha poll.’’
Said one analyst, “When the JDS fielded Kupendra Reddy with a mere 19 votes, it was looking for a win with cross-votes from the Congress and independents, who had professed their support for the Congress. Since that did not happen, they are crying foul.’’
A source close to Kumaraswamy indicated that the BJP encouraged JDS to put up a candidate, knowing fully well that they had insufficient votes. While some sources say the JDS is blaming BJP after the defeat, the fact remains that party leaders should have assessed the situation better before putting up a candidate.
Lashing out at the Congress for cross-voting by BJP MLA B Somashekhar, Kumaraswamy said the grand old party claims to uphold values of democracy and the Constitution.
“The Congress has been credited with birthing the concept of cross-voting in the election system. It is a stain on the country’s politics. The Congress won the Rajya Sabha election not by conscience vote but by cross-vote,’’ he said. “Those who jumped from Congress to BJP and enjoyed power have now betrayed the same BJP by cross-voting. BJP is not shocked by this, neither am I. The real game is the Lok Sabha elections,’’ he said.
Political analyst B S Murthy disagreed. “The loss in the recent Council election and big loss in the Rajya Sabha election has caused a massive setback for the JDS, with little scope for recovery,” he said.