Section of K'taka BJP pushing for BSY's return to party fold

Yeddyurappa quit BJP last December after accusing the partyleaders of hatching a conspiracy to sideline him

A section of Karnataka BJP members has made a fresh push towards bringing former Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa back into the party fold, saying the move would yield significant dividends in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.

Former CM DV Sadananda Gowda, ex-minister Basavaraja Bommai and Arvind Limbavalli today left for Gujarat to meet BJP Campaign Committee Chairman Narendra Modi, aiming to impress upon him the need for a quick decision in the matter.

 

quit BJP last December after accusing a section of the party's state and national leaders of hatching a conspiracy to sideline him and cut him to size.

He then floated the Karnataka Janatha Paksha (KJP), positioning it as a regional outfit which would work for the cause of the state.

In the May Assembly elections, KJP won a mere six seats in the 224-member House but, more importantly, secured nearly 10 per cent of the vote-share, denting BJP's electoral prospects and indirectly helping Congress to come to power after multi-cornered contests.

Yeddyurappa last week indicated that his party was not averse to an electoral understanding with Congress in the Lok Sabha elections, a comment which is being seen as a ploy by him to exert pressure on the BJP central leadership to take an early call on his return.

But the BJP high command does not seem to be in a hurry as general elections are still a few months away; it's no secret that there is no love lost between Yeddyurappa and party stalwart LK Advani.

At the state-level as well, senior party leaders HN Ananth Kumar and KS Eshwarappa are among those who are opposed to Yeddyurappa's return. These mebers have expressed apprehension that Yeddyurappa would go back to his "old ways" of trying to exert a stranglehold over the party.

While a section of state BJP is in favour of his return with a suitable position given to him in the party, the other faction wants Yeddyurappa to come back without any conditions, a stance unlikely to be accepted by the former CM.

But there is a general consensus that it's for the party's central leadership to take a call on his return, and a senior party leader commented that it would be a matter of time before BJP embraces him again.

The campaign seeking Yeddyurappa's return is expected to gather momentum once the ongoing session of Parliament ends, sources said.