Bengaluru: The win in two out of three seats it contested in the Lok Sabha polls in Karnataka has come as a morale booster to the JD(S), smarting under the sex scandal allegedly involving its MP Prajwal Revanna that rocked the party.
Party state President and former Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy won from Mandya while his nephew and sitting MP Revanna, who is facing probe on charges of sexually abusing several women, failed to retain his Hassan seat.
The party candidate M Mallesh Babu won from Kolar.
JD(S) appeared to take the 33-year-old Revanna’s electoral loss in its stride.
On his defeat, Kumaraswamy told reporters here: “It was known to all. Certain issues cannot be discussed openly. We will try to rectify things where we have lost”.
Revanna is currently in the custody of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the cases, after remaining at large abroad for over a month.
Though the cases of sexual abuse came to light after a number of pen-drives allegedly containing explicit videos involving Prajwal were reportedly circulated in Hassan, just days ahead of Lok Sabha polls there April 26, it by and large became a major scandal after voting in the segment was over and government ordered the probe April 27.
Prajwal’s father and Gowda’s son H D Revanna, who is currently out on bail, is also facing charges of sexually abusing a woman and also charges of kidnapping, causing a huge embarrassment for JD(S) and making things worse for its leadership.
This Lok Sabha election was considered to be crucial for JD(S), after it registered its worst performance in over two decades, in the 2023 Assembly polls in Karnataka.
The regional party had witnessed a steep fall in its tally in the Assembly polls — from 37 in 2018 to 19 (out of total 224 seats) in 2023. Its vote share has dipped from 18.36 per cent in 2018 to 13.3 per cent in 2023. The party’s worst-ever performance was in 1999 when it got 10.42 per cent votes following the split of the Janata Dal into JD(S) and JD(U).
So, in what is largely being seen as an alliance of compulsion, JD(S) with a hope to better its prospects forged an alliance with BJP in the backdrop of the ruling Congress’ alleged attempts to weaken the party by wooing its leaders and legislators, and the strategy seems to have paid off, as it won two out of the three seats it contested.
Aimed at ensuring that the regional party wins the seats that was ceded to it, the BJP leadership insisted that Kumaraswamy himself contest in one of the three seats, hoping that it will give momentum to his party’s prospects in the other two seats, and help the alliance partner, especially in the old Mysuru region, where the saffron party is considered to be relatively weak.
By winning two seats, JD(S) has sought to demonstrate that it’s still a force to reckon with, particularly in the old Mysuru region (south Karnataka) from where the regional party draws its strength from.
It is a role reversal of sorts for JD(S), as the party along with Congress, which were running a coalition government back then and fought the 2019 Lok Sabha election together, had come a cropper winning just one seat each, out of total 28.
The BJP and JD(S) alliance is said to have by and large clicked, thanks to ground level coordination and understanding among their workers.
Good performance in this election was key for JD(S) to prove that it still enjoys the clout over the old Mysuru region and the dominant Vokkaliga community, which seemed to have largely moved towards Congress in the last Assembly polls.
“BJP’s organisational strength and resources, its support in vote transfer, national role for JD(S) leadership on BJP-led NDA government coming to power at the centre might have also added to factors that proved advantageous for JD(S),” a senior JD(S) leader said, pointing out that the 64-year-old Kumaraswamy has made no secret of his desire to become Agriculture Minister, if the Modi government comes back to power.
Kumaraswamy alleged Tuesday Congress attempted to finish off the JD(S) in the State but the voters of old Mysuru region stood by the party.
“There were attempts to finish off the JD(S). When we formed the coalition (earlier), the Congress tried to defame the JD(S) and used derogatory words against us, which I cannot forget. People have given them a befitting reply,” the JD(S) second-in-command said.
Kumaraswamy said the BJP and the JD(S) were natural allies, which people of the state have accepted.