‘The decision to hike reservations for almost all communities has struck a chord’

At 80, he is busy as ever. While he is no longer BJP’s chief ministerial candidate, BS Yediyurappa is the man spearheading the campaign for Karnataka 2023. In a chat at his residence in Bengaluru, the Lingayat leader spoke about expanding the party’s social base, development and Hindutva, and the need of an absolute majority. He also made it clear that while he will not contest elections, he is not ready to hang up his boots just yet. Excerpts from the interview:

You have been travelling across the state. What’s the mood?

Our Vijay Sankalp Yatra has covered almost all constituencies. The public response has been better than what we expected. I have been touring the state and attending programmes as a poli­tician for the last 60 years. This is the first time I have seen such a tremendous response.

The first time in 60 years?

Yes, this is the first time I have seen this kind of support. When we hold rallies, people throng the streets for many kilometres to express their support for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). On that basis, I’m telling you that we are going to win an absolute majority and we are going to form the government. There is no doubt about it.

No party has been re-elected to power in Karnataka in 38 years. What makes you think you can break out of this trend?

Mark my words, this time we are not just going to win; we are expecting to win a large number of seats. We won’t have to depend on other political parties to form a government. We are going to do it on our own. And we expect to get a higher vote share than Congress this time.

What explains the unprecedented pro-BJP wave you say you have witnessed?

There are many reasons. First, the decision to hike reservations for Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) has struck a chord with people. Second, the Basavaraj Bommai government has performed well and implemented good programmes for all communities. Third, people are disappointed with Congress. They did not implement any good scheme when they were in power and now they are playing negative politics. When I was chief minister, and deputy chief minister, our Bhagya Lakshmi programme impacted 8-9 lakh people. We developed over 1,100 villages under the Suvarna Gramodaya Scheme.

Most importantly, BJP has a leader who inspires the whole country. Both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah have been coming to the state regularly and people have taken note of the Central government programmes they are benefiting from. Congress doesn’t have this kind of leadership. You cannot compare Rahul Gandhi with Modiji or Amit Shah.

You have known Prime Minister Modi for many years. He seems happy to share the stage with you. What is the kind of relationship you have with him?

I have a lot of respect for Narendra Modiji and he has shown affec­tion towards me. The way he responds to people is inspiring, and not just Indians but people across the world see him as a visionary.

When Amit Shah and Prime Minister Modi address the people of Karnataka in Hindi, does their message reach the people?

One hundred per cent. We have offered to translate but the feedback we have got from the people is that there is no need. Everyone understands Hindi these days.

Is Mandya the epicentre of the BJP campaign this election, with the prime minister and Amit Shah visit­ing the district several times?

Naturally, we have to concentrate on Mandya, Mysore and Chamarajanagar. We have not been able to win many seats in this region till now.

The Mandya MP, Sumalatha, sup­ports BJP even if she did not join us for technical reasons. She will campaign for our candidates in the district and this will help us a lot. At present, we only have one MLA in the district—from KR Pete. This time, I think we will win four-five seats in Mandya district.

Although you have announced your retirement from electoral politics and are no longer the chief ministeri­al candidate, you are the one leading the campaign. Do you feel like you have been brought back from retire­ment to help BJP win this election?

I resigned as chief minister to give some­one else an opportunity. No one asked me to quit the post. It was my own decision. Also, I never said I would retire from politics. I said I won’t contest elections. And from that day on, I have been touring the state every day, without any ex­pectations. People continue to support me the way they always have. It has been a continuous journey.

Is this the most difficult campaign you have led? BJP has pinned its hopes on winning this election.

As I said before, we have decided not to depend on other parties to form the government this time. You know how we suffered every time we took the support of other political parties. That’s why we are asking people to give us an absolute majority, so that we can give them good governance. We are confident they will back us.

This is the first time I have seen this kind of support. We are going to win an absolute majority. There is no doubt about it, says BS Yediyurappa

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You have had to persuade several BJP leaders, including a minister and the KR Pete MLA, not to defect. Why were they made to feel sidelined?

One or two people did leave because they realised they might not get a seat. Nobody else will go. We have tried to convince every­body. And now, under the leadership of Modiji, they are confident we will win and they will naturally back the winning side.

You had to cancel a rally in Mudigere, Chikmagalur, reportedly because people were protesting against the sitting MLA and wanted someone else to be fielded. Is BJP going to field a lot of new faces this time?

We cancelled the rally because we were not able to control the crowd. About new faces, you can definitely expect to see many this time. We have also requested our MPs to devote all their time to campaigning in their respective constituencies.

What is the thinking behind increasing the quotas for Lingayats and Vokkaligas at the cost of Muslims? Both are dominant communities. Do they deserve 2 per cent extra reservation each?

This is the first time any govern­ment has taken this risk. We have increased quotas for not just domi­nant communities but for almost all communities. Everyone is with BJP this time.

Is this decision going to be implemented, or is it merely a poll promise?

We have every intention of imple­menting it and we have sent the recommendations to the Centre. The Centre has told us we need not seek their approval. Amit Shahji told us that whatever decisions we have taken, we can implement those ourselves. So now, we are looking for­ward to fulfilling all the promises we have made to the people.

Vokkaliga votes are crucial if BJP is to make inroads in the Old Mysore belt. As a Lingayat leader, how are you going to appeal to the Vokkaligas to vote for BJP?

As far as Yediyurappa is concerned, no one sees me as merely a Lingayat leader. I have fought for all communities—whether Lingayats or Gowdas or SCs/STs. BJP is now actively seeking the support of Vokkaligas and other communities so that we win a comfortable majority.

Should BJP’s campaign be based on development or Hindutva?

I am particular about focusing on development. Wherever we campaign, we take the party’s development record and agenda to the people. As for Hindutva, naturally Hindus will support us. It is development that people want and we must focus on that.

Do you approve of the communal pitches made by some of your party leaders on hijab, halal, Tipu Sultan, and other issues?

I have never supported such things. If a few leaders are making such statements, it is not correct, and I will not support them. We are from a party that wants to take everyone along.

You are often blamed for failing to groom a second line of leaders in the Karnataka BJP. Is there a leadership crisis?

There is no dearth of strong and upcoming leaders. We are also welcoming people from Congress and Janata Dal (Secular) who want to join us. Those who joined us to help us form the govern­ment in 2019 have not left us.

Some leaders in the party are said to be jealous of you because of the importance you are being given. Do you think they will try to sabotage your son Vijayendra’s maiden cam­paign for your home constitu­ency Shikaripura?

Not at all. Vijayendra is sure to win the seat by a margin of 50,000 votes or more. He is well liked by people, especially the youth. He has been touring the state as a BJP office-bearer for some time now, and he often draws bigger crowds than even I can. The people of my constituency wanted him to con­test from here, even though he was ready to contest from Varuna against Siddaramaiah.

We have to concentrate on Mandya, Mysore and Chamarajanagar. We have not been able to win many seats in this region. This time, we will win four-five seats in Mandya district, says BS Yediyurappa

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There are some local issues in your home district Shimoga, including the Centre’s decision to close down the Vishvesh­warya Iron and Steel Plant.

Last week, I discussed this matter with Amitbhai and he has as­sured me that the plant will not be shut down. It is an emotional issue for the people of Shimoga and for the entire state. The Union finance minister, too, has been apprised of the importance of the plant and I can say with surety that it will not be closed down.

In about 40 constituencies, there seems to be a close con­test, and BJP lost some of these seats by a slender margin in 2018. What is your strategy to win them this time?

There are over 50 constituencies we have identified where just about 50 per cent of the voters support us. Senior leaders are con­centrating on these constituencies. I have toured some of them repeatedly. We have made specific candidate recommendations for these constituencies to the high command and I am hopeful of winning 35-40 of them.

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