Cauvery and Mahadayi river water disputes: JD(S) to ride the revival wave

Bengaluru: The Cauvery and Mahadayi river water disputes have come in handy to bolster the image of the Janata Dal (Secular), which has been trying to recover lost ground since its poor showing in the Rajya Sabha and Legislative Council polls.

The party, which was almost written off politically in the state after eight of its legislators cross- voted in the RS and Council polls, is reportedly rising like the proverbial sphinx, much to the dismay of Congress and BJP.

While the Mahadayi river row over sharing of water with Goa has reportedly helped the party make inroads into BJP territory in Mumbai-Karnataka, the Cauvery crisis, is believed to have helped it consolidate its position in Mysuru, Mandya, Hassan, Chamarajanagar and Tumkuru.

The master stroke was the day-long hunger strike by party supremo and former PM, H.D. Deve Gowda over the Supreme Court’s directive on release of water to Tamil Nadu. The fact that Mr Gowda managed to hog the limelight even more by meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi to seek his intervention in the Cauvery row and save the state’s farmers from more distress, has done the party's image wonders, say observers.

With the BJP failing to resolve the Mahadayi dispute despite its assurances to people of Mumbai-Karnataka, the JD(S) took out a padayatra and held rallies in the districts concerned to expose the hollowness of its promises and struck a chord with voters here.

But it’s hard to say whether the party can hold on to this popularity till the 2018 elections. A JD(S) leader admits that if the Cauvery row disappears next year owing to copious rain or Mahadayi dispute is resolved with the PM's intervention, the party may lose its selling point.