Congress plan fails, BJP-JD(S) alliance continues in MCC

The ruling Congress party, which hoped to replicate the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) model to keep away BJP from power, by forging an alliance with JD(S), failed in the Mysuru City Corporation (MCC) as both the BJP and JD(S) leaders behaved with responsibility to continue their coalition.

Mysuru district is blessed with one MLC, nine MLAs (now eight as Nanjangud MLA V Srinivas Prasad has resigned), including Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and two ministers — Dr H C Mahadevappa and Tanveer Sait. JD(S) has three MLAs and three MLCs. But the BJP has only one MP. However, the Congress has lost most of the local bodies, including the Zilla Panchayat and the MCC.

The Congress leaders thought that the mayoral election, held on Wednesday, was a good opportunity to join the ruling coalition and started the ground work well in advance. The chief minister himself and District in-charge Minister Mahadevappa had delegated the responsibility of joining hands with JD(S) to Minister Tanveer Sait and MUDA Chairman D Dhruvakumar.

As the Congress is the largest party in the MCC, it had a capacity to win 24 votes on its own and it had the support of two SDPI members and one BSR Congress member. Besides, there are eight Independents, who could have been wooed over. So, it could have won 35 votes, just four votes short of the magic number, 39.

The condition of the BJP was vulnerable as it was only a junior partner with 14 votes in the coalition with JD(S). It was also an disadvantage as there were no MLCs or MLAs.

The president of the city (district) unit of the BJP, Dr B H Manjunath, was appointed only six months ago and he is not a professional politician. “A doctor by profession, Manjunath brought in professionalism into politics and was successful in keeping the flock together and also won over the confidence of the JD(S) leaders,” a corporator commented.

“The state-level leaders of the BJP had immense confidence in me and gave me a free hand. All the former ministers, MLAs and MLCs, BJP corporators, district-level leaders and especially MP Pratap Simha, who were members of the core committee extended all cooperation to me. I was in constant touch with the JD(S) leaders, MLAs Sa Ra Mahesh and G T Devegowda in particular. So, there was a cordial atmosphere,” Manjunath recalled.

He said, “We took all corporators of the coalition into confidence. For the first time, the posts they were selected for were announced in advance and there was no trace of dissent. Just to keep the flock together, we took our corporators to Chamarajanagar, while the JD(S) corporators were taken to Bidadi.”

“Given that the most influential person of the state at present, Siddaramaiah, himself was bent on keeping us away from power in the MCC, we were under immense pressure. First, they tried to woo away the whole JD(S). They were ready to settle for just the deputy mayor’s post. Then they tried to split the JD(S). Later, they attempted to split both the JD(S) and the BJP,” he said. “They had all the resources. But we were bound by the principles. Even though the deputy mayor’s post was meant for a General Woman, we chose Rathna Lakshman, a Nayak leader, who belongs to Scheduled Tribe category,” he pointed out.