The present crisis is the third for Yediyurappa but the BJP high command has decided to back the defiant Yediyurappa once again. This attitude could be because of the BJP rise in Bihar, or because of the fall of Congress in Bihar elections or because of its decision to brazen it out. While many senior BJP leaders in Delhi feel that it was his own doing, the problem for the leadership, is to enforce discipline at the chief minister level because the BJP lacks the kind of leadership it had at the national level when both Advani and Vajpayee were at the helm of affairs. The BJP has once again bought some temporary relief.

The first crisis was in November 2008 when the powerful Reddy brothers of Bellary raised their banner of revolt against the chief minister when the Chief Minister tried to clip their wings. While they threatened to split the party, the chief minister was asking for their heads. After almost bringing his government down, the Reddy brothers won the battle by getting more mining concessions and getting rid of CM’s close associate Shobha Karanjilade but Yediyurappa continued.

An assertive Yediyurappa caused the second crisis last month when he reshuffled his cabinet and dropped some ministers while bringing back Shoba. Soon the rebels struck - 13 BJP MLAs including two ministers and five independents withdrew their support plunging the government into a crisis. Yediyurappa almost lost his majority after the disqualification of 5 independents and became the first chief minister of the state to seek trust vote in the assembly twice in three days and managed to win both times with razor thin majority.

The current crisis pertains directly to a land scam involving the chief minister and his family. As for the BJP, this has come at a wrong time when the party is accusing the congress on bigger scams like the 2G scam and Commonwealth scam.

Why has the BJP High Command given in to the Chief Minister? The difference in tackling the third crisis is that the CM has become defiant and took on the High Command as compared to the other two occasions when he compromised.

First of all, the chief minister has rubbed the point that it was he who won the state for his party in 2008 elections.

Secondly, after finding its feet for the first time in the South, the party is in no mood to rub the Lingayats on the wrong side. It was the massive backing of the Lingayats, which made Yediyurappa win because the Lingayats got the chance after 20 years as the last Lingayat chief minister was Veerendra Patil.

Thirdly, the TINA factor also helped the CM in finding an alternative to him. Also the replacement cannot be made without the consent of Yediyurappa but “Yediyurappa will replace Yediyurappa “ was his stand.

Fourthly, the chief minister had been able to get the support of the Mutt heads, who are very powerful in the state. He has developed a good rapport with them and has been cultivating them.

Fifthly and more importantly, panchayat elections are just three weeks away and removing the chief minister may have adverse impact on the polls. This was the trump card held by the chief minister for his continuance.

Sixthly, the chief minister had been able to mobilise the support of a large number of legislators and MPs and had stuck to his stand he had done no wrong. With a weak central leadership, the High Command was in no position to discipline the defiant chief minister and lose the state.

Finally, the BJP leadership assessed that if Yediyurappa was pushed to the wall, he may decide to split the party and even if he may not be able to win the next elections, the damage to the BJP would be substantial.

The lesson BJP should learn is that the party High Command has no control over the regional satraps. This is true of Yediyurappa; this is true of Narendra Modi (Gujarat) or Shivraj Singh Chauhan (Madhya Pradesh) or Raman Singh (Chhattisgarh) or even Arjun Munda (Jharkhand). They have all declared independence. It should find a way of dealing with them effectively.

Despite all these, the BJP may face the pubic criticism that while it was demanding the heads of Raja and Ashok Chavan, it had a different yardstick in dealing with Yediyurappa. It cannot stand on a high moral ground. Politics is perception and rightly or wrongly the public perception is that Yediyurappa should go. The BJP has lost an opportunity to deal with corruption in high places.

Yediyurappa’s woes are not going to end, as he has to deal with powerful forces like the Reddy brothers who still count. Unless he changes his style of functioning, things will not improve. If the party does not do well in panchayat elections, the CM will have to face the brunt of attack and the BJP may have to rethink its strategy. The BJP should try to find the root cause of troubles and deal with it rather than finding temporary solutions. Temporary solutions will only give temporary relief. (IPA Service)