Internal turmoil within the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the southern Indian state of Karnataka has become public as the party prepares for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. After losing the recent state assembly elections, the BJP had planned to revamp its strategy and include fresh faces in its line-up. However, this has also put the future of the sitting Members of Parliament (MP) in jeopardy. While the party is looking forward to including credible, new faces from cadres and government services, there are strong rumors that most sitting MPs may not be considered for tickets.
The ruling Congress is hoping to capitalize on its state assembly success and push for more than 20 seats out of the 28 parliamentary constituencies in the state. Thirteen BJP MPs have expressed their concern to Bengaluru North MP and former Chief Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda, stating that they are being maligned and could be dropped from the ticket list ahead of next year’s election. Gowda has urged the party high command to clarify the situation, warning that the development could send the wrong signal to voters.
The BJP had given tickets to 72 new faces in the assembly elections. However, former Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai has reportedly said that the experiment of giving tickets to new faces has backfired. While there is a need for introspection in the party after the assembly loss, sitting MPs claim there are no souls within the party who will make an effort to introspect.
Meanwhile, sources say that some sitting MPs, including Gowda and Mangala Angadi, could be excluded from the list of Lok Sabha election candidates. G.M. Siddeshwara, MP from Davanagere, may also miss out. With only a year to go before the Lok Sabha polls, the BJP must quickly resolve its internal issues and present a united front if it hopes to win back voters.
