Bengaluru: After being ousted from power earlier this year in July in a coup engineered by the BJP, the Janata Dal (Secular) is reportedly preparing the ground for a turnaround of sorts by exploring the possibility of tying up with the same party, soon after the results of the bypolls to 15 assembly constituencies are over in December.
What has created ripples in political circles is the statement of JDS supremo H.D. Deve Gowda that his party will return to power in the state within a few months.
Strengthening the rumours are reports of recent telephone conversations between Deve Gowda and Chief Minister, B.S. Yediyurappa, which has given credence to the possibility of another coalition government if the BJP fails to win a majority of the 15 seats going to polls in December and finds itself in a vulnerable situation vis-a-vis the opposition Congress and JDS.
Highly placed sources told Deccan Chronicle that Mr Deve Gowda is now holding consultations with his party MLAs on whether they should extend support to the BJP government from outside or be a part of it.
Mr Gowda is reportedly of the view that the disqualified MLAs would find it difficult to win the bypolls with the popularity of the ruling BJP on the wane in the Mumbai-Karnataka and Hyderabad-Karnataka regions primarily because of its failure to address the woes of flood victims.
According to his perception, the Dal may be able to retain all the three seats going to the bypolls but the majority of the remaining 12 seats may be won by the Congress. If the BJP sponsored candidates fail to win at least eight assembly seats, the Yediyurappa government may face a threat to its existence throwing up the possibility of the JD(S) acting as a prop to save the government by offering its support.
What has strengthened the possibility of the JD(S) backing the BJP is the fact that the majority of JD(S) MLAs who attended the meeting called by Deve Gowda, are not prepared - mentally or financially - to face the people again in a snap poll. And after the bitter experience it had with the Congress in a coalition government, the JD(S) would not like to burn its fingers again and would prefer to extent outside support to the BJP government to ensure it lasts till 2023 when the polls are due, said sources. The JD(S) also believes it is better to back the BJP government so that its legislators can expect an additional flow of funds for their constituencies. Sources said the party supremo is planning to hold another round of meetings with all legislators once the top court delivers its verdict in the disqualified legislators' case. A separate meeting with JD(S) members of the Legislative Council is slated to be held on November 12 in Bengaluru.
Meanwhile, sources disclosed that BJP national leaders who are close to party national president Amit Shah, are in constant touch with Deve Gowda and H.D. Kumaraswamy over the last few weeks. The duo are learnt to have promised BJP leaders that they will not destabilize the Yediyurappa government at any cost and if required, are ready to extend support from outside. Following the green signal from the high command, Mr Yediyurappa has initiated a dialogue with the JD(S) patriarch to seek his party's support in case of an unfavourable result in the December 5 bypolls.
