Yediyurappa's son Vijayendra faces tough task of uniting divided BJP ahead of LS polls

Like father, like son. In mannerisms, working style and even the way he greets visitors, BY Vijayendra is a carbon copy of his father and BJP veteran BS Yediyurappa or BSY. The million-dollar question is: will the young Vijayendra succeed in uniting a divided and demoralised BJP ahead of the crucial Lok Sabha elections?

The first signs, unfortunately, are not very encouraging.

The number of disgruntled leaders in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Karnataka has actually gone up ever since the party leadership suddenly hoisted Vijayendra as the new state unit president, six long months after the BJP was reduced to a 66-seat party in the Assembly.

When Vijayendra took oath as the new president, the event was boycotted by several front-line BJP leaders while some others of equal stature who attended did more out of courtesy for his father BSY than for the son.

Realising he has a tough task on hand, Vijayendra, unmindful of the slight, is going out of his way to forge friendships across the internally divided party, knowing that he doesn’t have too much time before the parliamentary battle only months away.

The complaint of party veterans is that Vijayendra is not a leader who comes from the grassroots like his father BSY. Indeed, he is a first-time MLA. And his elevation is a dampener to all those who feel that they will forever remain junior to someone even though they have been working for the BJP for decades.

The critics

Leading BJP leaders like Basanagouda Patil Yatnal, V Somanna, CT Ravi, Aravinda Bellada, Ramesh Jarkiholi and others did not attend the swearing-in programme of Vijayendra on Wednesday (November 15).

And the leaders who did were also unhappy over his selection. These included former chief minister DV Sadananda Gowda, KS Eshwarappa, R Ashok and others.

"They attended the programme for the sake of attending but did not attend wholeheartedly. Even some leaders attached to the BSY camp are not happy with Vijayendra's appointment,” a party insider told The Federal.

Those who had been aspiring to become the top leader in Karnataka including Ravi, Dr Ashwatha Narayana, Ashok, Yatnal, Bellada and others have lost their hopes. Their grudge is they will be sidelined in the coming years, said a senior BJP MLA who doesn't want to be named.

Vijayendra’s father BSY was called a farmer leader and became a powerful Lingayat community leader until he was sidelined by the party leadership in Delhi ahead of the May elections which the BJP badly lost. Chastened, the leadership again began consulting BSY over Karnataka and eventually named his son as the new state president, stunning the various factions.

New makeover?

"The BJP is planning to give preference to young faces in the parliamentary elections in at least 10 (of 28) constituencies. The central leadership has thus planned to give the state BJP into the hands of a young team. This may spoil the future of first-line leaders who have worked for 40 or more years. Thus, they are all unhappy with the selection of Vijayendra," another party leader said on the condition of anonymity.

According to them, although BSY is a deserving leader, the former chief minister has taken control of the party through his son. Vijayendra’s biggest advantage is that he will be trained by BSY to become a mature politician, a former BJP minister told The Federal. After the Assembly elections, the BJP simply collapsed in Karnataka, triggering a leadership crisis. The new president will conduct a legislative party meeting on Friday (November 17) to pick an Opposition leader for the House.

Vijayendra knows the challenges he is faced with. Not everyone will be ready to listen to him, at least initially. He knows he will be tolerated by most only because he is BSY’s son and that he has been anointed the president by the national leadership.

Naturally, Vijayendra is behaving every inch like his father, who enjoyed widespread support despite having his share of critics. No surprise, then, that he is being increasingly called as Vijayendra Yediyurappa.

“On the day of swearing in he looked almost like his father in all the gestures he made. In voice, speech and tone he resembled his father. Though not a mass leader, he has learnt the functioning style from BSY,” one party leader observed.

Aping father

Vijayendra bowed down to all the seniors to seek their blessings after attending prayers at the BJP office. His father was a firm believer in Hindu prayers and rituals.

There are two important factions in the Karnataka BJP. One believes in the Hindutva agenda and another believes in the inclusiveness of all communities. BSY was identified with the second category. Vijayendra, in his speech on Wednesday, also hinted at inclusiveness.

Like his father, Vijayendra has also started visiting several seers of the Lingayat community along with holy men of other communities. BSY did this too whenever he was hit by a crisis.

One thing is sure, though. BSY will constantly guide his son. "So, two Yediyurappas are leading the state BJP now," said one party insider. "We will have to wait for Vijayendra to start performing. Both his critics and supporters will be watching keenly.”