In a sign that running coalition governments is as tough a call as pre and post-poll alliances, Karnataka’s H.D. Kumaraswamy-led JD(S)-Congress government hasn’t even hit the ground running as yet. With two days to go for the fledgling coalition in Karnataka to mark its first month in office, the birth pangs are far from over. The first formal meeting of the Cabinet has not been held till date, nor have ministers settled in and begun actively running their departments.
Mr Kumaraswamy’s primary focus has been to ensure that this unlikeliest of partnerships survives the pulls and pressures of malcontents within the Congress, who are wary of the JD(S) taking credit for big-ticket plans such as a new Budget that aims to write off farm loans worth over Rs 50,000 crores. The CM’s predecessor, former CM Siddaramaiah, does not want the new government to come out with a Budget at all!
That is the least of Karnataka’s problems. Given the state’s precarious financial condition — the revenue surplus in 2017-18 was a mere '383 crores — the chief minister must mobilise thousands of crores to keep his party’s word and present the first Budget of an alliance which only fell into place to stymie the BJP’s strategy to secure a foothold south of the Vindhyas. For the Congress, for whom a nationwide anti-BJP Opposition alliance is an imperative, it’s vital that the Karnataka government survives the antics of its local state leaders.
For now, Mr Kumaraswamy has set a three-month target for his government to work at full pace. Given the continuing deep-seated rivalry of the two parties on the ground, no one is really holding their breath.
