Political parties in Karnataka on Thursday went into election mode following dissolution of the state assembly, ending the uncertainty after the abrupt collapse of the BJP-led government on November 19.
The presidential notification of the dissolution of the Assembly was conveyed to Raj Bhavan on Wednesday night, completing an important formality before the state goes to polls.
The BJP, disappointed over the fall of its first ministry in the South within eight days of its assuming office in the wake of JD(S) refusing to support it, has already hit the streets to "expose the acts of betrayal" by its former coalition partner.
Former chief minister B S Yeddyurappa, whose ministry had the shortest tenure in the history of the state, is an angry man now and has unleashed a scathing attack on JD(S) chief and former prime minister H D Deve Gowda, his son, former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy and their party for pulling down his government.
Yeddyurappa and his team were currently touring parts of South Karnataka, the heartland of JD(S)' power base, campaigning against the party for its "politics of opportunism". For its part, the JD(S) looked shaky after many of its legislators led by M P Prakash revolted against Gowda's leadership.
The rebellion in the JD(S) ahead of the polls has boosted the morale of the BJP and the Congress. About 17 former MLAs boycotted the JD(S) workers convention called by Gowda on Thursday as part of the party's preparations for the assembly election and the rebel ranks were expected to swell in the coming days.
Several JD(S) leaders, including former MLAs, have been opposing Gowda's style of functioning, indicating that the former prime minister no longer enjoyed the command over the party he led since the 2004 assembly election.
The dissolution of the assembly followed the three-way fractured verdict delivered by the 2004 polls in the state, which saw installation and fall of three coalition governments in a span of 41 months.
The JD(S), which had emerged a key player with 58 seats in the polls, called the shots in government formation.
A cursory look at political parties indicate that all the major players -- Congress, BJP and JD(S) face crisis as factionalism has been haunting them. There is a feeling in the Congress that the party has ignored major communities like Vokkaligas and Lingayats. The party is also a divided house with several factions operating, constantly complaining to its party high command over the style of functioning by some of its leaders, including former leader of opposition in the assembly N Dharam Singh and KPCC president M Mallikarjun Kharge.
There is a sharp internal bickering in the BJP with many of its leaders opposing Yeddyurappa's style of functioning. The crisis in JD(S) appears to be intense than the Congress and the BJP as Gowda's party appears to be heading for a horizontal split.
Some of the JD(S) men, who had won the 2004 assembly election on the party symbol, have already declared that they will quit the party, indicating that they may knock the doors of other political outfits.
Samajwadi Party, led by former chief minister S Bangarappa, the BSP and the JD(U) were also extending invitation to JD(S) rebels led by Prakash, who claims the support of 17 MLAs. In the coming months, all political parties in the state are expected to witness hectic restructuring exercise ahead of elections.
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