 "H D Deve Gowda")
Last week, H D Deve Gowda held a press conference to denounce the state Congress government’s handling of the floods in North Karnataka. The 92-year-old founder of the Janata Dal Secular, former Prime Minister, and former Karnataka Chief Minister used the occasion to make another point: “There will be no threat to the (National Democratic) Alliance in any polls, including panchayat and assembly. My relationship with PM Narendra Modi will never change. Our ties are good, and in the past 10 years, I have never once spoken lightly of him.”
He added, as if to underscore the JDS’s political autonomy, that the party aimed to win 50-60 seats in the forthcoming civic polls in Bengaluru. The signal to party workers and political observers was clear: While the alliance between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the JDS might experience strain, the personal rapport between the two leaders was solid, and any attempt to upset that balance would be risky.
Deve Gowda’s message was strategically timed. Friction between the allies, who came together in September 2023, is becoming increasingly visible. The latest point of divergence was the invitation extended by the Congress government to Booker Prize winner Banu Mushtaq to inaugurate the world-famous Mysuru Dasara festival. The BJP reacted sharply. “I personally respect Banu Mushtaq for her achievement. It is acceptable when she chairs the Akhila Bharata Kannada Sahitya Sammelana, but not Dasara, a Hindu religious event which starts with offering pooja to Goddess Chamundeshwari. Does she have faith in Chamundeshwari Devi? Is she following our traditions?” BJP leader and former Mysuru MP Pratap Simha told reporters in Mysuru. On X, Union minister Shobha Karandlaje described the invitation as an “insult to Hindu sentiments.”
By contrast, H D Kumaraswamy, Union minister and Deve Gowda’s son, supported the move. “The state government intends to give Mushtaq a big message and responsibility in leading the Goddess Chamundeshwari procession. I support the move,” he said. The issue reached the Supreme Court, which ruled that the Dasara procession was a cultural, not a religious, event.
It was not the only point of difference. Communal clashes erupted in Maddur, Mandya, during the visarjan of Ganesh idols during Vinayaka Chaturthi last month. From Delhi, where he was recovering from illness, Kumaraswamy criticised the state government’s handling of the incident but avoided siding with any religious group. “Kuvempu’s vision of a ‘garden of peace for all communities’ was a reality in Mandya. But some divisive forces are systematically destroying peace,” he said.
“Riven by internal dissension, the Congress government is not in a good position in Karnataka. In that context, the JDS is evaluating its options very closely, especially in relation to its standing among minority communities. Nuances mark the differential,” said Sugata Srinivasaraju, author of a book on Deve Gowda’s life and politics.
The threats to the JDS are tangible. Rivals have steadily eaten into its vote share. In the 2023 assembly polls — fought without alliance partners — the JDS recorded its worst performance since 2004, winning just 20 seats compared with 37 in 2018, and seeing its vote share fall from 18.3 per cent to 13.3 per cent. Both Congress and BJP gained at its expense. Soon after, the JDS joined hands with the BJP ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, and Kumaraswamy entered the Union Cabinet.
Yet, the partnership has begun to show strain. On both sides, local actors have worked at cross purposes. The BJP’s central leadership has at times restrained its state unit from moves that might offend the JDS.
For example, the Mysuru Chalo Yatra, which the BJP undertook in 2024 in consultation with the JDS, was nearly stymied when Kumaraswamy threatened to pull out of it in a region, he argued, was a JDS stronghold, apparently demanding primacy to the JDS in the way the 130-km padayatra was organised. Interventions from Delhi smoothed over the differences, and the yatra went ahead as a joint protest against the Congress state government. “But not much has happened since then in that part of Karnataka,” admitted a campaign manager for state BJP chief B Y Vijayendra.
The uncertainty over leadership in the BJP’s Karnataka unit has only deepened tensions. While new chiefs have been named for several state units, a decision for Karnataka remains pending, undermining Vijayendra’s authority — he is neither fully in nor out. Some ambitious leaders are using the JDS to train their guns on the way the BJP unit in Karnataka is being steered.
Meanwhile, the BJP has maintained an uneasy silence over the conviction of Deve Gowda’s grandson, Prajwal Revanna, for sexual offences. Privately, party leaders are said to be appalled, but they have stopped short of open criticism, though many claim that local BJP leaders were instrumental in unearthing the pen drive containing explicit images that led to Revanna’s conviction. Last month, Union minister Pralhad Joshi was forced to rebut Congress allegations that the BJP was keeping quiet because of its alliance with the JDS. “Where have we kept silent? And why should we? I have already spoken on this. If someone commits a crime, action must be taken, that’s the BJP’s clear position,” he told reporters. Vijayendra’s supporters, however, believe Joshi’s remarks were designed to undermine him.
Against this uneasy alliance stands the personal bond between Deve Gowda and Modi. Managers on both sides insist the two speak frequently and maintain a cordial relationship. But the upcoming local polls in Karnataka, due in November or December, will be the real test. Inevitably, the BJP and JDS will find their interests clashing. “We’re certain that Modiji and Deve Gowdaji, with their excellent equation, will be able to work things out,” said a source close to Vijayendra.
Meanwhile, JDS workers are keeping a close watch on Bengaluru, where a possible Congress implosion could reshape political equations yet again.
