BSY faces arrest under POCSO; will it impact BJP in Karnataka?

The possible arrest of former Karnataka chief minister BS Yediyurappa on charges of sexually harassing a minor girl is expected to have a severe impact on both the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the veteran leader's own political legacy.

BSY, a charismatic mass leader who rose from humble beginnings, may see his political career end with this criminal case under POCSO. This episode will also affect his party and his political family.

On its part, the BJP seems to be resigned to the arrest of BSY, as the party’s most charismatic leader in Karnataka is known, and has quietly begun the hunt for replacing those helming the state BJP now.

However, if and when BSY is arrested, it could mark the end of the political career of a man who played a major role in helping the BJP to rise in Karnataka and for transforming the state into the party’s only gateway in southern India.

Major blow

Currently, BSY is a member of the BJP Parliamentary Board, his son BY Vijayendra is the BJP state president while his elder son BY Raghavendra is a four-time MP from the Shivamogga Lok Sabha constituency.

BJP sources said that BSY, after realising the severity of the case, went to Delhi to seek help from party bosses but failed to get an appointment with Union home minister Amit Shah and others.

This, party sources say, are signs that the doors of the party high command are closed for BSY at least for now.

BJP leaders admit that BSY’s arrest will be a major blow but insist that BJP will rebuild itself in Karnataka on the strength of its nationalist and Hindutva appeal.

Setback for party

A former general secretary of the state BJP told The Federal that if BSY is arrested in this crime case, it will definitely be a setback for the party. 

“The party is now attacking the Congress on various grounds including the Valmiki Board scam where an official committed suicide, leading to minister B Nagendra’s resignation. If BSY is arrested, it will be a setback for the BJP as it cannot attack the government on moral grounds,” a party leader said.

According to a former organising secretary of the BJP who hails from the RSS, the law will take its own course in BSY's case. Though it is a setback for the party and they may not be in a position to react, this case will help the party reorganise itself, given its strong base in Karnataka, which is the only gateway for the BJP in South India, he added.

POCSO case against BSY

B S Yediyurappa (81), former Chief Minister of Karnataka, has been charged under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and IPC Section 354(A) for allegedly sexually assaulting a 17-year-old girl.

The case was filed by the girl's mother, who claimed that the incident occurred on February 2, 2024, when she visited Yediyurappa's house wanting justice for her daughter, a rape victim.

The mother alleged that her teenage daughter was sexually assaulted by Yediyurappa during the meeting in his house.

The complaint was filed on March 14, 2024, alleging that Yediyurappa had sexually assaulted her 17-year-old daughter at his residence in Bengaluru. The investigation into the case has been transferred to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) by the Karnataka government to ensure a thorough and impartial inquiry.

'Twist given'

Reacting to the accusation on March 14, Yediyurappa said the woman had been trying to meet him but was never allowed to enter his house. "Once, when she was crying, I called her inside my house and spoke to the police commissioner, B Dayananda, that some injustice had happened to her. However, when she started speaking something against me, I concluded that this woman is not proper," he said.

Yediyurappa alleged that after meeting the police commissioner, she gave another twist to the matter.

In her complaint, the woman said that Yediyurappa spoke with them for nine minutes. He then spoke with her daughter, who used to address him as thaatha (grandfather), and later took her to a room where he allegedly molested her. The complainant said the girl escaped from the room and came running out, later narrating the ordeal to her mother.

When the mother confronted Yediyurappa, he purportedly assured her of his assistance in the case, claiming that the girl was like his granddaughter.

BSY's track record

BSY is widely credited with building the BJP from the scratch in Karnataka along with VS Acharya, KS Eshwarappa, HN Ananth Kumar and BB Shivappa. Some of these leaders are no more.

While no one disputes BSY’s popularity, they admit that corruption charges and his weakness for his family have been concerning factors.

Whenever the BJP tried to sideline BSY in the past, the party did not achieve good electoral results.

In 2011, BSY was the chief minister when the party wanted his exit after his alleged involvement in illegal land denotification cases. He was even arrested and sent to jail. When he was released on bail, the party refused to reinstate him as the chief minister.

A furious BSY quit the party and launched his regional Karnataka Janata Party (KJP). This led to the BJP losing the 2013 elections, securing just 40 MLAs, while the KJP secured six MLAs and 10 per cent of the vote share.

Lingayat factor

This forced the BJP to welcome BSY back into the party fold, leading to 104 MLAs in the 2018 Assembly elections. The BJP took power after poaching 17 Congress and Janata Dal (Secular) MLAs in 2019.

The party again asked him to step down in 2021. After he was shown his place, the Lingayat community shifted allegiance to the Congress, which catapulted to victory in Karnataka last year.

Even after losing power in Karnataka, the BJP high command could not name an Opposition leader or the state president due to the BSY factor.

Unwillingly, the party appointed BSY’s son Vijayendra as the state president in November 2023 and his loyalist R Ashok as the Opposition leader in the Assembly.

Though the POCSO case was registered on March 14, the Congress government was not in a hurry to instruct its police to act and handed it over to the CID.

BSY once went to the CID for a voice test but the investigation process was delayed as the Congress allegedly did not want to address the matter, fearing a backlash from the Lingayat community in the just ended Lok Sabha polls.

BJP minus BSY

After the elections, the situation changed. The BJP won 17 Lok Sabha seats and the Congress nine seats.

A BJP internal study after the elections suggested that BSY’s impact was minimal and that regional leadership and cadres in the coastal and Malnad regions, in North Karnataka and in Bengaluru worked for the party.

A BJP leader in Karnataka said this was the right time for the BJP to free itself from BSY's influence as there are no significant elections around the corner.

Vijayendra factor

The next Assembly elections are due in four years and the next general elections are five years away. By then, the BJP hopes to prepare another rung of leaders in Karnataka.

The BJP is already planning to remove BSY’s son Vijayendra as the state president, a senior BJP leader told The Federal on condition of anonymity.

Additionally, the party simultaneously wants to change the Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Assembly. The party feels R Ashok will not be effective enough to counter the Siddaramaiah-led government.

The party has already made former National General Secretary CT Ravi a member of the Upper House (Legislative Council) and he may well become the Opposition leader in the Upper House. Since Ravi is a Vokkaliga and Ashok is also a Vokkaliga, the party may opt for a Lingayat or a Backward class leader to be LoP in the assembly.

Meanwhile, potential candidates to head the party include Basnagouda Patil Yatnal, Aravind Bellada or backward class leader V Sunil Kumar.