Written by – Lakshmana Venkat Kuchi

Telangana: Congress is looking to persuade BJP MLAs who are former Congressmen to do a ‘ghar vapasi’ and also poach a few Janata Dal (S) MLAs to strengthen its base in Lok Sabha constituencies it hopes to win. In Telangana, both BRS and BJP leaders are targets for Congress poachers.

It is not just the BJP that can wean away MLAs from other parties to destabilize a government and shore up its numbers, Congress too can pay back in the same coin. The opposition, BJP, is witnessing it now with prospects of some of its new MLAs doing a “ghar vapasi” to their original party in Karnataka and Telangana, leaders from both BJP and BRS are on the Congress radar.

In Karnataka, on target of the Congress are its erstwhile members who defected to the BJP to bring down the HD Kumaraswamy government four and half years ago. The reason for the Congress to go ‘shopping’ for BJP MLAs is not that it needs new members to strengthen in the assembly. Congress already has a very comfortable majority – but because it wants to shore up its Lok Sabha chances from Karnataka, where the BJP swept in the last general elections, it is targeting all such prospect leaders.

Speculations are ongoing that a few Congress rebels who brought down the JD(S)-Cong government are being persuaded to return home and for the same, operation “hasta” is being handled by KPCC chief and deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar. He is said to have excellent personal relations cutting across the party lines and has already met a few disgruntled BJP and JD (S) MLAs.

Meanwhile, among the prominent personalities expected to do a ghar vapasi is BJP MLA and former minister ST Somashekhar, who called on Chief Minister S Siddaramaiah the other day. He is one of the 14 Congress MLAs who jumped the ship and made the HDK government fall in 2019. The names of a few others in the BJP camp who came from Congress are also being mentioned as those heading back to their parent party.

Janata Dal (Secular) leader Ayanur Manjunath, who had earlier quit Congress and joined the BJP and then shifted to the JD(S), has called on DK Shivakumar and is rumoured to be joining the Congress soon. Karnataka deputy chief minister, who had a major role in the victory of the party and is considered a strong organizational man and political strategist, is also furious at BJP leader CT Ravi who spoke out against the suspected move to poach BJP MLAs.

“What did they (BJP) do? They had fun by taking away JD(S) and Congress legislators. What threat can you issue… others are also capable of issuing threats. Did they not trigger the fall of the coalition government,” questioned DK Shivakumar in reaction to the media queries on the comments of the BJP leader.

 “We do not need anyone for the numbers we have. However, how can I stop people from coming (to Congress) as people across the State are trying to protect the country? We don’t need any permission from anyone. Political leaders have the right to chart their political future,” the deputy chief minister said, adding fuel to the fire of rumours about the ‘home coming’ of former Congress MLAs.

While the BJP leaders swung into action to prevent MLAs leaving and to thwart the Congress’s poaching moves. Former Congress MLAs now in BJP have their influence and can make a difference in at least 12 Lok Sabha constituencies. This is the reason why Congress is making a strenuous effort to get the MLAs back into its fold, and precisely to prevent this, the BJP has asked all its leaders to stop the MLAs from leaving the party.

Former Chief Minister BS Yeddiyurappa, who benefitted from the rebellion of the Congress MLAs in 2019, has been asked to prevail over them to ensure they stay in the BJP. But it remains to be seen if the former Congress MLAs accept his pleas and stay back.

The other victim of the Congress’s predatory moves, the Janata Dal (Secular), says that the ‘ghar vapsi’ narrative was spun by Congress to deflect the attention of the people from its failures and the allegations of corruption in transfers and commission seeking.

Making these allegations, former Chief Minister and JD(S) supremo HD Kumaraswamy said that there was no way he or anyone could stop someone who wanted to leave. “Can we stop those who want to leave? There is no party loyalty left now. Personal gain becomes important. I cannot say anything more on this,” the former Chief Minister said and claimed that Congress was getting in touch with opposition legislators.

But the game has become more intense in Telangana where BRS and disgruntled BJP leaders are heading for the Congress.

For example, Tall SC leader and former BRS MLA Vemula Veeresham is all set to join Congress. Besides, many of his colleagues are also said to be in talks with Congress. The reason being cited is that many in the BRS were fighting the BJP and when the BRS leadership went soft against the BJP, they had no choice but Congress.

Besides, few new surveys by media houses indicate a Congress victory, signs of which are strengthening given the revival of Congress that has been witnessed since Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra.