Physician heal thyself

How is that Karnataka Chief Minister, Mr. B S Yeddyurappa, appears uncertain and tentative even after three years of being in the post, a total of four and half years in the government, if you take his stint as the Deputy Chief Minister under the second coalition of government headed by Mr Kumaraswamy in the latter phase of the 2004-2008 period?

            Ever since he has occupied the coveted post, to realise his life ambition, Mr. Yeddyurappa appears totally haunted by fear of being dethroned. He had had not a single peaceful day. He looks morose, worried and apprehensive.

            The continued tension that he has been undergoing is finding expression in myriad ways. His jaunts around temples in Karnataka and outside are steadily on the increase. His temper has become increasingly irascible. He blabbers with promises which he is unable to keep, as he himself described in one of the rare moods of self introspection as “Bogale Dasayya”.

            The upshot of all this is that the administration has become a rudderless ship, which is drifting without direction. The classic example has been the hurried manner in which the state government burned midnight oil to respond to the Supreme Court directive on measures to check illegal mining, after sleeping over the matter deliberately or otherwise.  Mr Yedddyurappa finds himself caught the centre stage of controversy over the scams  and all the rhetoric he has used in attacking those who have levelled charges, and his threat of “exposing” others, ,  has been unable to wash the sins of the involvement of the family members.

            While politically everything appears to be going in his favour in favour of him, in dealing with the people, the party high command and the opposition parties, he appears to be tripped badly on a totally unexpected front, - in managing the party legislators and others, who appear to be seething with discontent, over his style of functioning and waiting to be burst out one day or the other.

            Take the voters of Karnataka for example. , BJP has  built up a track record of consistent growth  in every elections to the extent that it has displaced the Congress from the exalted position it all along enjoyed as the No. 1 party in terms of voters strength. On the other hand, Congress remains stagnant and the JDS with its limited influence in few pockets of Karnataka is hardly in a position to challenge either of the two bigger political parties.

            In 2008 elections the mandate was clearly for BJP rule, while the electorate put the two other contenders out of the race either singly or severally. And that the mood of electorate remains unchanged is evident by the outcome of the plethora of elections and bye elections held to the assembly in the last three years. This is despite what Mr Yeddyurappa often describes as a campaign of deliberate calumny against him.

            His relations with the high command have shown considerable improvement from the phase of uncertainty which marked initially. It is on his side clearly now. The BJP high command has soft peddles on the allegations of corruption, while pillorying centre on the 2 G scam and other issues. The high command has started turning a deaf ear to the complaints and grievances of the dissidents and has conveniently forgotten its own promise of looking into the veracity of the allegations made against him.

            As for as leadership in the state for the entire spectrum of the political parties are concerned, Mr Yedduyurappa has surely dwarfed others be in his party or outside in Karnataka. The Congress has nothing to offer to the people except the same old faces, haggard and jaded, who are more interested in setting personal scores than worry about the why the voters are shying away consistently from the party. For the JDS, its reach is limited and age and energy are not on the side of Mr Devegowda, who despite enjoying the position of the Prime Minister of the country has been nursing the desire of staging political comeback in Karnataka either directly or by proxy. His heir apparent, Kumaraswamy dazzled for while with promise of being future leader only to relapse into the shell.

            Within BJP, Mr Yeddyurappa still remains unchallenged leader. The one who could have upset his apple cart, Mr Ananth Kumar, his one time ally in building the party in the formative years, has been totally sidelined,. He has been outwitted and outsmarted by the politically ambitious Yeddyurappa. All the behind the scene efforts made by Mr Kumar, to  reassert his primacy have been successfully thwarted and Mr Kumar has been left with no option  but to remain sucking his thumb, not knowing where exactly he lost the race for leadership against  Mr Yeddyurappa.

             So also have been the Reddy brothers, who once raised banner of revolt. Caught as they are in the web of litigation over illegal mining in Karnataka, the Reddys have a bagful of problems of retaining their economic empire rather than worry about the political prospects and challenges.  Mr Eshwarappa, the State President, is considered leader mainly due to his exofficio status than anything else.

            Handling the legislature has been no problem, barring the initial days, when the combined opposition, did give him creeps. After their the Centre puts it foot down on the machinations of the Governor at the behest of the opposition parties, to send Yeddyurappa packing home, the Congress and JDS have practically resigned  to the continued rule of Yeddyurappa. He may fall by his own folly or the folly of party men but not because of the opposition. The opposition may bark but hardly bites.

            Mr Yeddyurappa under the circumstances must blame none but himself for the predicament he has landed in himself, despite all over the political advantages.  Mr Yeddyurappa is in a way, his own enemy. For the dissident activities, have been product of his own follies and foibles, a sad reflection on the quality of the leadership he has provided to the party.

            There is something in his psyche which has exacerbated the situation. Those who have viewed his political graph, admit that the Mr Yeddyurappa from the beginning has been a lone wolf, who would desire to hunt on its own rather than in pack. Being a team leader has hardly been his virtue all along.  He would act more on impulses than otherwise. His dictatorial behaviour was in public view during his stint as the leader of the opposition and party president. It was a common talk in the party circles then that they would come to know about the party’s programmes from his pronouncements made in  the press conferences in Hubli than through any discussion in the party for a.

            This might have paid dividends then when the party was in the opposition and it needed all onerous efforts to widen the base. But in the changed circumstances of party being voted to power, this has proved to be more of a liability than advantage. The newest thing has been the increased clout his family member and those in the coterie around him have begun to enjoy. This comes in sharp contrast to the style of working of his predecessors like Ramakrishna Hegde, J H Patel. In the case of Bangarappa and Mr Devegowda, the family member did get a peace of cake but it was at quite an obtrusive level. The BJP Generally Secretary Mr Jaitley once openly upbraided Mr Raghavendra MP and son of Mr Yeddyurappa, for landing the latter in a mess.

            While the ministers have been nursing a feeling that there is too much interference in the working of the departments, with decisions taken behind their back and without their knowledge, the legislators are concerned over the manner in which the Chief Minister is keeping them away. This has also been the feeling among the party workers, who are increasingly become dejected over the behaviour of the Chief Minister. Moreover the Chief Minister wants to do all the things himself, and ends up with none and has hardly any time for consultations and confabulation leading to lot of heart burning.

            The dissidents showed their capability when the Reddys during their open rebellion, almost succeeded in pulling him down and the Mr Yeddyurappa was lucky to escape the ultimate with a whisker. Unless Mr Yeddyurappa sees the writing on the wall and takes proper corrective action, the coming days foresee a path bristled with difficulties beckoning him. He must heal the wound he has created himself rather than expect the high command to bail him out every time the dissidents carry the complaint to New Delhi.

              May be that the people are still tolerant, going by the results of the series of elections held. But can the mood remain the same two years when the fresh elections come two years later?

Ripe for public outcry on growing corruption in Karnataka?

HUBLI, 8^TH April, 2011

            The fast by the social activist Anna Hazare in Newdelhi and churning it has created on the politicians disdain for prevention of corruption, has lot of  relevance to Karnataka, especially in the present context, where the atmosphere is reeking in corruption, going by the public allegations flying all around against the politically powerful and mighty.

            One thing is clear. It is the politicians as a class, who are opposed to any measure to effectively rein in corruption in public life. They have successfully evolved ways and means to torpedo the attempts or emasculate the system which is put into operation by hook or crook to ensure a free run for themselves.

            While the New Delhi, has a history of dragging its feet on the Lokpal bill in general and on the question of bringing the Prime Minister under its purview in particular, Bangalore has a track record of dragging its feet on the question of strengthening the hands of Lokayukta with suo motto powers to investigate the charges of corruption

            The common thread that is running in the attitudes of the Central and State Governments, is the marked reluctance on the political parties, be it the Congress, or the Non Congress hues including the BJP, to hold the bull by horns. The intention is very clear. They don’t want to create any fetters which come in the way of their untrammelled enjoyment of power.

            In the Central Government, the main question which has been endlessly debated is that whether the Prime Minister. Should be brought under the purview of the Lokpal bill, in whatever form it may be brought in. The solution was simple. Had those who held the high august office were to voluntarily declare that they would subject themselves to the jurisdiction  of Lokpal, the matter could have been resolved in  jiffy  suitable law could have found a place in the statute books.

            But none of those who have held the office of the Prime Minister, from late Indira Gandhi to Manmohan Singh, including the likes of Vajpayee, Devegowdas, and Chandrasekhars could come out with the gesture that the persons holding high office should not only be honest but appear to be honest too like Caesars wife. For them the authority and status of the office appeared more important than the need for probity in public life. It is the cumulative mess created by the Cassandras of corruption, which has resulted in the 2 G spectrum scam, which has made the Prime Minister squirm in his seat. His image as a clean and honest politician has taken a severe beating, a big price he has paid for his  vacillation.

            If the prime minister of the country is unwilling to lead from the front in the fight against the corruption, how do you expect the lower minions in the political hierarchy like the Chief Ministers and the state governments down the line to act otherwise? If  the President of the USA Mr Nixon could be investigated for the water gate scandal, or the high and mighty be proceeded for tax evasion in America, it does not stand to reason as to why the busy  bodies in the country should be  placed above the law.

            In Karnataka, the story is the same with slight difference. There is a law and an institution to fight corruption since 1984. . But it has been deliberately made ineffective. The Lokayukta has not been given suomotto powers to initiate action.  Such powers given when the act was enacted in 1984, were subsequently withdrawn two years later for reasons which were not clear by late Ramakrishna Hegde, who had professed commitment to the probity in public life.

            Lokayukta, as an institution,was almost unknown for nearly one and half decades. The first time, it caught the public imagination  was when Mr Justice Venkatachala  was appointed  during the  S M Krishna regime in 2001,  started  being proactive in the discharge of his duties.

            It was Justice Venkatachala who focussed attention on the lacunae in law and took up with the government for remedying the same through a suitable amendment to the law. His five year term ended without his dream of the grant of suomotto powers being realised. Mr Justice Santosh Hegde, who succeeded him, pursued the pending issue with the government. His five year tenure is coming to an end in couple of months and like his predecessor he has to retire with a feeling that the government ignored his plea.

            None of the governments have held office during the period of the present and previous Lokayukta have been able to restore the suomotto powers to the Lokayukta, which is a felt need. And these includes, the Congress government led by Mr Krishna, Congress-JDS coalition headed by Mr Dharam Singh of Congress, the  BJP-JDS coalition headed by Mr Kumaraswamy of the JFS and the present BJP government headed by Mr Yeddyurappa, which has been in office from 2008.  The message is quite clear none of them was keen on doing it despite their public protestation of their commitment to fight corruption

            The Upa  Lokayukta has the suomotto powers, which can be exercised over the lower echelons of the administration. The other higher-ups do not come under its purview. But more often than not, the post is kept vacant.  When Mr Venkatachala, started exercising the powers of the Upa Lokayukta in his crusade against corruption, the government woke up after a long gap to and felt the need to fill the vacancy. This was done more with the intention of reining in Justice Venkatachala than to strengthen the functioning. But much to the chagrin of those who had planned the move, the new Upa Lokayukta Mr Justice Patri Basangowda proved to be a good foil rather than hindrance to Mr Justice Venkatachala. After Mr Patri Basangowda retired the post in 2009,   the post has remained vacant.

            Absence of the suomotto powers has not been the only problem faced by the Lokayuktas in Karnataka, who have taken their job seriously. The unhelpful attitude of the government at both political and administrative levels, which has been blunting the efficacy of the institution and efforts put by the Lokayukta to trap cases possession of assets disproportionate to the known source of income

            In some cases, the officers trapped remain without being suspended and some of them have been quite powerful enough to wangle promotions and get good posting too. The government deliberately delays the question of granting permission for the Lokayukta to prosecute the officers, who have been nabbed. And the list of the governments acts of sins of omission and commission is quite lengthy.

            A major development, which has occurred during the BJP government stressing the imperative necessity of strengthening the Lokayukta, has been the surge of the scams of sorts, which have surfaced. The most important one has been the one pertaining to the illegal mining of iron ore, involving powerful politicians, in office and out of office. The report given by the Lokayukta which probed into the matter has been gathering dust.  It has been relied upon by the Supreme Court  but has not  opened the eyes of the state government.  The inference is quite clear. But for the e Supreme Courts persistence in a case before it at present, the controversy  over the illegal mining in Karnataka would have been pushed under the rug.

            The second one has scam over the denotification of the land, which during the recent years has been openly regarded as virtual money spinner for the politicians in power. Going by the open charges being hurled it looks as if this has taken place one way or the either during the regime of almost all the Chief Ministers especially in the last one and half decades. A powerful minister of the BJP government has also been caught in the act. And the Chief Minister Mr Yeddyurappa and his bete noire Mr Kumaraswamy have been openly trading charges against each other.

             Had a person like Mr Anna Hazare been here, perhaps Karnataka would have witnessed the kind of  uproar that one is witnessing in Jantar Mantar Newdelhi.