BENGALURU: Former Prime Minister and Janata Dal (Secular) supremo HD Deve Gowda on Friday asserted his party’s intention to contest the upcoming elections independently, particularly local body polls.
The JDS is in an alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party and is part of the National Democratic Alliance since 2023.
Speaking to reporters, the Rajya Sabha member said, “With BJP, we are going to contest the elections to Lok Sabha, Assembly and Council. What the BJP state president has said, I am not going to raise any questions on that. We will also contest all the local body elections on our own...” Gowda’s remarks come amid ongoing speculation about the future of the JDS-BJP alliance.
While the alliance proved effective in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections-helping the NDA secure a strong performance in Karnataka-recent months have seen reports of internal frictions, including over seat-sharing and coordination in local-level politics. Some JDS leaders pointed out that the alliance helped the BJP in about eight seats in Karnataka. The veteran leader’s refusal to directly challenge statements from state BJP president BY Vijayendra suggests a measured approach, avoiding public confrontation while reaffirming JDS’ autonomy.
Political observers view this as an effort by Gowda to protect the party’s regional identity and Vokkaliga base in the Old Mysuru region, where JDS traditionally holds sway, ahead of crucial local body elections expected in the coming months. As Karnataka gears up for panchayat and urban local body polls, Gowda’s statement underscores JDS’ strategy to strengthen its grassroots organisation independently, even as high-level talks on NDA coordination continue.
The development highlights the delicate balance in coalition politics, where regional parties like JDS seek to maintain leverage within broader alliances. Gowda is a seasoned politician.
His assertion of independently putting up candidates for local body elections is both to keep the party’s cadre happy as well as to test the waters for the Assembly elections which is still far away. At the same time he seems to be beholden to PM Modi for political and family reasons, though of course he has compromised with his secular ideals. He perhaps senses that Kumaraswamy may go with the BJP
in the longer run. Not being critical of Vijayendra is also driven by the desire to not cause strain to the BJP-JDS alliance,’’ said political analyst Prof PS Jayaramu.