BJP plays caste card, woos Lingayats

BENGALURU: In a last-ditch effort to garner votes in the December 5 bypolls to 15 constituencies in Karnataka, the BJP has apparently tried to play the caste card by asking people from the Veerashaiva-Lingayat community to vote for party candidates and support chief minister BS Yediyurappa’s regime.
Lingayat votes are crucial for the BJP’s victory in at least six Assembly constituencies that are facing by-election. Majority of voters in Athani, Kagwad, Gokak, Hirekerur, Ranebennur and Vijayanagar in the North Karnataka region belong to the Veerashaiva-Lingayat community. Yellapur in Uttara Kannada district too has a sizeable number of Veerashaiva-Lingayat voters. At 17% of Karnataka’s population, the Lingayat community — that Yediyurappa belongs to — is numerically the largest in the state and has historically supported the BJP.

But with uncertainty looming over the BJP winning the required number of seats, the party leaders have resorted to appealling to the community members. Law minister in Yediyurappa’s cabinet JC Madhuswamy on Monday remarked that Lingayat members voting for non-BJP candidates would mean a “tight-slap” on Yediyurappa, sparking off a furore. Appealing to the community to vote for his party, he said if the voters fail to keep Yediyurappa in power, it would take another 20 years for the state to have a Lingayat CM.

A week ago, the CM himself drew criticism when he asked Veerashaiva-Lingayat voters in Gokak constituency to vote for the party candidate Ramesh Jarkiholi.

His remarks are said to have stemmed from concerns that the community votes might get divided in the constituency. While Ramesh Jarkiholi belongs to a scheduled tribe, the JD(S) has fielded Ashok Pujari, a Lingayat, who quit the BJP after he was denied the ticket. The Election Commission (EC) has filed an FIR against the chief minister for making the statement in violation of the model code of conduct.

The Congress has slammed the BJP for openly seeking votes in the name of caste. Responding to minister Madhuswamy’s statement, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president Dinesh Gundu Rao tweeted: “Defeat of disqualified MLAs is writing on the wall. Asking for votes in the name of caste is violation of the election code of conduct. Do not insult followers of Basava principles by seeking votes on caste in favour of defectors.” The KPCC also filed a complaint with the EC on Tuesday, against Madhuswamy for his “appeal on caste and religion at Vijayanagara constituency.”

The Congress leaders see the BJP’s act of playing the caste card as an attempt of desperation. “After the fallout in Maharashtra, the BJP is seeing that people vote differently in state and parliamentary elections. That is why Yediyurappa is desperately trying to play identity politics,” Congress spokesperson MV Rajeev Gowda said.