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BS Yediyurappa announces his resignation as Karnataka Chief Minister: Who leads the race to succeed him?

By alagu, 26 July, 2021
Yediyurappa, Karnataka, BJP

Days after being under national headlines over his resignation drama, Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa has dotted up his game by finally deciding to tender his resignation from the post. His resignation has come on Monday amid celebrating his two years as the Chief Minister.  His resignation was widely expected on Monday as the result of a political crisis in the state where the veteran politician had earned a pile of rebels from within the party in his two-year term. 

The political crisis in the BJP-ruling Karnataka was brewing with Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa's political game as the state has been clouded with suspense over his probable resignation from the post. Yeddiyurappa, who is one of the oldest Chief Ministers in India, has successfully marked his two-year term as the Chief Minister of Karnataka on Monday -July 26, and amid grand celebrations, he has counted his final minute as the Chief Minister of the current government while addressing the event. 

78-years-old Yediyurappa has been in national headlines for over a week after he was surfaced with the speculations that he is going to resign from the post after the fellow party leaders had rebelled against him by alleging that the Chief Minister has been indulging in corruption and letting his family members interfere in the administration. While such allegations had been levelled against him on an unprecedented scale, Yediyurappa had also been accused of flawed handling of the pandemic with several party leaders had demanded him to resign by pulling in his age factor into the picture. 

They cited that his age is not comforting him in discharging his duties and Yediyurappa had held hectic discussions and parleys with the BJP's Central leadership including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP National President JP Nadda and he also had met with the religious leaders and the leaders of his Lingayat community, to display his clout in the state. It was reported that the Central leadership would ask him to step down and also carry out the cabinet expansion in Karnataka to accommodate the rebels. 

While it was said that Yediyurappa would be tendering his resignation as Chief Minister to Karnataka Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot on Monday, Karnataka was surrounded by suspense amid staying in the know that Yediyurappa would become the only Chief Minister in Karnataka for not completing even a single five-year term as the Chief Minister, though he held the post for three times. The suspense has got more weight when there has been no announcement of his resignation on Sunday. 

After dropping several hints about his resignation, Yediyurappa has on Sunday said that he had not received any word from the party's high command and he will wait for further directions while performing his duties as the Chief Minister. When there has been no official announcement from Delhi over the change of guard, a Karnataka minister has gone to Delhi, fueling speculations that he would be one of the probables in replacing Yediyurappa.

On Sunday, Karnataka Minister Murugesh Nirani had arrived in Delhi to meet the BJP leaders. According to reports, Nirani, who is serving as the state minister for Mines, also belongs to the Linkayat community, the BJP's strong voter base, like Yediyurappa. While the BJP Central leadership is working out to fix the Karnataka political crisis, which would collapse the party's rule in the only state that it rules in South India, the reports say that Yediyurappa had got a word from Delhi to step down from the Chief Minister as the operation for changing the guard to run the government till the next assembly polls begins. 

It was speculated that Yediyurappa would announce his resignation on Monday during addressing the event that was organized to mark the celebration of two years of his government. As speculated, he had finally announced in the event that he has decided to resign. According to ANI, Yediyurappa said, "I have decided to resign. I will meet the Governor after lunch." The 78-year-old leader has brought his rule to an end, mirroring the flawed political tradition in Karnataka. 

Who is leading the race to replace BS Yediyurappa? 

With the sudden travel to Delhi, Karnataka state minister of Mines Murugesh Nirani has joined the race to become the next Karnataka Chief Minister. Other contenders include BJP General Secretary CT Ravi, Union Minister of Parliamentary Affairs Prahlad Joshi (Lingayat), Karnataka Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai, and former Union Minister Sadanandha Gowda. Arvind Bellard, a two-time MLA from the Hubli-Dharwad constituency, is also in the race. 

According to our sources, Prahlad Joshi is leading the race as the BJP leadership is planning to replace a Lingayat with a Lingayat. Joshi's current tenure as the Union Minister has also helped him lead the race. For BJP, losing Yediyurappa's stronghold is equal to losing the Lingayat community- the strong vote bank for the Central ruling party that pillars the party's reign in the state. Yediyurappa has demanded the BJP leadership to politically elevate his son Vijayendra and the BJP is also thinking to expand the Karnataka cabinet, after choosing Yediyurappa's successor, to accommodate the rebels. 

 

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