BENGALURU: Leaders of BJP and JD(S) are on the verge of forging an alliance in order to wrest power in Mysuru Zilla Panchayat, but the ruling Congress has not given up efforts to poach members of opposition parties to secure majority in the local body.
A JD(S) MLA from Mysuru, on the condition of anonymity told Deccan Chronicle that having coming to know about one round of talks held between BJP and JD(S) leaders in Mysuru recently, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah reportedly told local leaders to target fence sitters of both these parties and seek their outside support. It has become a major embarrassment for the Chief Minister to see both BJP and JD(S) coming together to power in his home turf despite the Congress emerging as a single largest party. Already, it has been decided to give the post of president to JD(S) and vice-president post to BJP.
In case the alliance comes through, members of Congress would be forced to occupy the opposition benches. .
The legislator said local JD(S) MLAs led by Mr G T Deve Gowda and Mr Sa Ra Mahesh and Mysuru-Kodagu Lok Sabha member Pratap Simha held the first round of talks in Mysuru on Sunday last and decided to support each other. JD (S) does not want to join hands with the Congress after it played a 'dirty politics' by preventing Mrs Bhavani Revanna, wife of former minister, Mr H D Revanna from becoming president of Hassan ZP.
“Since people have given a mandate against the Congress,, our leaders have decided to have a truck with BJP,” he said.
Sources said JD(S)-BJP combine has chances to come to power at least in nine zilla panchayats where the electorate had given a fractured verdict. The BJP has deployed its state leaders like Mr S Sureshkumar, Mr R Ashok, Mr Somanna, Mr Ashwathnarayana to engage dialogue with JD(S) leaders of respective districts on alliance. Accordingly, local leaders of both parties are discussing over posts of presidents' and vice-presidents' in those districts depending upon the number of seats secured by each party.
The alliance partners are expected to wrest power in Mysuru, Bangalore (Rura)l, Raichur, Bagalkot, Vijayapura, Dharwad and Tumakuru.
A formal announcement regarding the alliance would be made after Mr Yeddyurappa's return to Bengaluru in a day or two, according to state BJP spokesperson Ashwathnarayana. In the elections held to 30 ZPs, Congress won in 10 ZPs, followed by the Bharatiya Janata Party in seven and JD(S) in two. However, in as many as 11 zilla panchayats, no party has secured a clear majority.
