Deve Gowda getting isolated in Janata Dal (S)

Leaders say family has made party its 'fiefdom'

The Janata Dal (Secular) is rapidly being relegated to the status of a regional party as former prime minister H D Deve Gowda, who built it up from scratch, continues to lose friends and trusted followers.

The main reason attributed by leaders deserting the party is that "Gowda runs JD(S) as his family fiefdom."

The clearest indication of the family's isolation is that only Deve Gowda and his two sons, Karnataka chief minister H D Kumaraswamy and public works and energy minister H D Revanna, are being seen to be campaigning for the party for the ensuing key byelection to the Chamundeshwari Assembly segment (Mysore). Other prominent JD(S) leaders are conspicuous by their absence from the poll fray.

"Important decisions are taken at his home and conveyed to party meetings. JD(S) leaders have been completely sidelined. Gowda's family wants to have its way in every government department," a senior JD(S) minister complained. This discontent is clearly discernable among a majority of the party's leaders.

The JD(S) has a history of desertion ever since its formation. The party, which was represented in the previous Legislative Assembly by only six members, made a massive splash in the last Assembly elections (2004) by bagging 58 seats. It joined hands with the Congress to form the first-ever coalition government in the state.

Soon thereafter, former ministers A K Subbaiah, A Lakshmisagar and former MP P Kodandaramaiah quit the party accusing Deve Gowda of being dictatorial. Deputy chief minister Siddaramaiah, who held the finance minister's portfolio, was forced to quit even before the coalition could complete a year in office.

Deve Gowda took exception to his attending a series of conventions of backward classes, minorities and dalits in which leaders cutting across party lines participated. Siddaramaiah was himself unhappy with the interference of Deve Gowda and his family members at crucial decision-making levels.

Eventually, Siddaramaiah left the party and resigned from the Assembly, necessitating the Chamundeshwari byelection. Of the 58 JD (S) legislators, 11 are Siddaramaiah's followers. They are expected to quit the party when the next elections come round.

In January, Deve Gowda's son H D Kumaraswamy staged a political coup by severing ties with the Congress and joining hands with the BJP to form the Karnataka Development Front government. A "shocked" Gowda initially opposed the coalition and "disowned" his son, threatening to expel him and his supporters from the party.

However, soon he changed tack. He "pardoned" Kumaraswamy for saving the party from being "hijacked" by Congress. Deve Gowda not only endorsed Kumaraswamy's action, but also assumed the role of a "mentor" to the government. This volte face enraged many senior party leaders. JD (S) heavyweight PGR Sindhia, who was the industries minister in the Congress-JD (S) government, distanced himself from Deve Gowda.

The latest to raise the banner of revolt is the senior-most JD (S) leader "� M P Veerendra Kumar "� who is the party's Kerala unit head. Last week, Kumar and other leaders like Surendra Mohan and Sindhia announced their intention to "expel" Deve Gowda from the JD(S) for compromising the party's secular credentials. They have convened a National Executive Council meeting in December to discuss the matter.

The move comes at a crucial juncture for the JD(S), which is facing a litmus test at the Chamundeshwari bypoll. Many leaders, including transport minister N Cheluvarayaswamy, housing minister D T Jayakumar and minorities welfare minister Syed Zameer Ahmed, are reportedly no more on talking terms with Deve Gowda.

Former Union minister V Srinivasa Prasad, who had joined JD(S) a couple of years ago, is now backing Siddaramaiah.

But Gowda seems unruffled by all these developments. "It seems that I committed the greatest mistake by taking up the responsibility of rejuvenating the party. I am least bothered about the consequences. The leaders planning to expel me are ignorant of the party rules. I will wait for their next move," he said.