scorecardresearch
Friday, March 29, 2024
Support Our Journalism
HomeTalk PointKumaraswamy’s poison remark: Bad news for 2019 opposition unity or can Congress...

Kumaraswamy’s poison remark: Bad news for 2019 opposition unity or can Congress be a reliable ally?

Follow Us :
Text Size:

Karnataka chief minister H D Kumaraswamy in an emotional outburst said that running the present coalition is like drinking poison. The Congress said that running a collation is a tough game, and Kumaraswamy should be prepared to handle it courageously.

The Print asks- Kumaraswamy’s poison remark: Bad news for 2019 opposition unity or can Congress be a reliable ally?


What you saw was a moment of weakness, after all Kumaraswamy is a human being too

Dinesh Gundurao
Karnataka Congress President

Chief minister H.D. Kumaraswamy wanted to convey something emotional at the meeting, but it came out in a different way. He wanted to talk about the pressures of work and how he is handling the coalition so that his party workers understand how hard he is working. It is important to remember that he did not even mention the Congress in his speech.

There will be problems whether it is a coalition government or a single party, and the chief minister should be able to handle it. It was an emotional outburst, which one should not overplay. He is also not getting enough media support for the amount of work that we as a coalition are doing. He is being criticised and there are hurtful social media campaigns saying #NotMyCM. What you saw was a moment of weakness and after all, he is a human being too.

As a coalition partner, the Congress party has given him full support and we want to tell him that we will go to the 2019 elections as an united front.

One must not forget that during elections we fought against each other as opponents, so we will need time to settle, to iron out differences. We have supported the JD(S) for the farm loan waiver, we made Kumaraswamy the CM, so we have and will continue to support the coalition government.

Give us some time to settle down to a proper working relationship, structure coordination and cement our relationship in such a way that we would seem like two arms of the same body. We are united and will remain a sincere partner.


For us in JD(S), the survival of this coalition is bigger than the party itself

Tanveer Ahmed
JD(S) Spokesperson

The important part here is to see who Kumaraswamy was addressing. It was not a public platform or a public meeting; he was addressing his own party workers and office-bearers who have been working for him. He was emotional and felt that if the party workers had put in their best efforts, he would not be in such a sad situation today. His statement was to boost the morale of the cadre and ask them to resume groundwork. He wanted to communicate that there was a lot of work to do and they should set their sight on 2019. There will be many tough questions that they would have to face and if they start work now, they will be able to reap benefits.

I agree that Kumaraswamy is an emotional person, he did cry, but certain people have a way of showing emotions. Kumaraswamy is a softhearted person and a caring man, and so he said what he felt. At this time I would like to quote what Deve Gowda ji tells all of us, “Adhikaaram, Yudh Bhayam” or ‘where there is power, there will be war’. And this is a war-like situation and we have to face it.

Statements are being made by several people, Kharge has his own way of expressing it, Kumaraswamy has his. Let’s be clear about the reason for forming this coalition. For us, the survival of this coalition is bigger than the party itself and it is not that PM Modi did not offer Kumaraswamy the post of the chief minister. We had to think of the greater good and how we preserve the country’s secular fabric and so we went with the Congress. That is what is important to us. And this move will haunt Modi in the 2019 elections, for sure.


Kumaraswamy’s ‘poison’ remark a precursor on what it means to be in alliance with Congress

Vaman Acharya 
BJP Spokesperson

Nobody asked Kumaraswamy to swallow any poison. What he has said in that statement is that the Congress is his poison, but we did not ask him to swallow it, did we? He did it on his own. How do you expect the coalition to last with such remarks?

Deve Gowda made a statement recently that the third front is not taking off as it seems to have hit hurdles due to local interests. My question is who is Deve Gowda or the JD(S) with a representation of just two MPs to determine what could happen in national politics?

The spirit of coalition has not gone deep in this alliance and the gap has nothing but widened. The BJP does not want to do anything now as the coalition is creating these issues for themselves. We want them to continue till the parliamentary elections and let people judge what will happen to the third front if they support the Congress with its inability to manage coalitions.

This is nothing but a precursor to the country on what it means to have an alliance with the Congress. It shows to the people how in order to survive a coalition with the Congress, you will have to remain subservient and leave your self-esteem behind.

This move by Kumaraswamy is to blackmail the Congress. The Congress did the same thing when it came to the budget allocation and ministerial allocation in Karnataka. It is trying to humiliate the JD(S) by telling them that they are a party of just 37 and are negligible. It is this humiliation that Kumaraswamy wanted to address and he did it by calling it a ‘poison’.

I still don’t know who asked Kumaraswamy to swallow this poison, maybe his father, but no father would wish this upon his son.



Nobody expects sincerity out of a coalition, it is a business transaction

Harish Ramaswamy
Political analyst

I don’t expect this government to last a full term, but I do expect them to survive till the parliamentary elections are over because that is a necessity for both the parties. If they don’t, they will be completely rooted out.

The question here is whether the Congress is making a mistake again and again. Siddaramaiah has been writing letter after letter and that is creating problems for Kumaraswamy. They have a common minimum programme that has been chalked out, yet at every step, the Congress seems to be objecting. A coordination committee is created to resolve issues and not create further hurdles.

As of now, three things have come up: the farm loan waiver, the budget which he presented with a clear JD(S) stamp, and the issue of continuing what the Congress had already promised. Siddaramaiah’s backseat driving has obviously riled Kumaraswamy. It appears as if the Congress is forcing him to implement only its own favoured policies. If the JD(S) concedes to all that the Congress wants, then why have JD(S) run the government at all?

Releasing videos criticizing the government, writing letters is nothing but pressure tactics. The whole idea of joining hands was to keep the BJP away, that has been achieved. But with such tactics, they are driving away the JD S too.

The Congress should remember that the JD S will return as a regional party, but a century-old national party may get decimated if they don’t work this out.

Nobody expects sincerity out of a coalition, it is nothing but a business transaction. But there should a way to handle a crisis like we have seen in countries like Israel which largely had a coalition government, but they run smoothly. The Congress high command needs to take serious note of Kumaraswamy’s remark and make amends before it is too late.


People don’t care much about Kumaraswamy’s outbursts, they care about delivery

Sandeep Shastri
Political scientist

If you look at Kumaraswamy’s track record and style, this approach of blow hot and cold has been his style. It is something that he inherits from his father. The challenge and contradiction he faces is how does he face his supporters and how he is unable to do what he wants to do for them. All these statements have been made in front of audiences who are his supporters and he is trying to justify to his party why he is unable to deliver.

This coalition is facing a difficult challenge as both the JD S and the Congress have come together not because of conviction but a necessity. The problems that Kumaraswamy speaks of, is bound to surface from time to time and the present alliance doesn’t have a fundamental understanding or agreement. Issues crop up on a weekly basis, be it the formation of the ministry, the budget or the distribution of portfolios. Every week, one sees doublespeak on the part of the alliance partners and, I suspect, that this will continue till the Lok Sabha elections. The 2019 election is the only thing that is holding them together as a coalition.

The comment that Kumaraswamy made takes us back to a similar statement that was made years ago when the former PM Manmohan Singh was demitting office. His wife had made a comment saying that her husband had swallowed poison to keep the alliance going and Kumaraswamy is also doing the same. At the end of the day, people don’t care much about such outbursts, all they care about is what the government is going to do for them and the deliverables. I am not sure if the government is earning goodwill with such statements and it is not improving their image. They have to work towards building their political future and deliver the promises made to the people of the state.

The JD(S), on one hand, is trying to woo people while they try to ensure that they have a future in the state. The Congress, on the other hand, is in utter disarray as after Siddaramaiah nobody is able to lead the party. There is no coordination between the CM, deputy CM and the state party presidents and that is hurting both parties. Both of them are facing contradictions at every step of the way and they are not making a sincere effort to create a proactive image of the government.

I see this as a clear political mask that Kumaraswamy has put which shows political opportunism. If such weekly political eruptions continue, then one can say that the Congress and JD(S) are giving the state of Karnataka on a platter to the BJP.


Cracks in Karnataka coalition don’t bode well for opposition unity in 2019

Kalyani Shankar
Political columnist

It was indeed surprising to see the new Karnataka chief minister H.D. Kumaraswamy shedding tears in public and claiming that he was swallowing poison like Lord Shiva. Why did he cry? At one level, it is a sign of admission that he has not been able to run the JD(S)-Congress coalition government. He must have been really reaching the end of his patience with the senior partner, the Congress, not cooperating with him.

At another level, it could also be due to the lack of chemistry. Kumaraswamy’s predecessor, Siddaramaiah, is believed to be behind his problems because the latter is still fuming over the Congress sidelining him and continues to enjoy a following among the legislators. In fact, Siddaramaiah left the JD(S) in 2006 when he felt that Deve Gowda was promoting his son Kumaraswamy.

It is not a good sign for opposition unity when the coalition in Karnataka is not working well within two months of its formation. Cracks have already appeared over several issues, including portfolios and waiver of farm loans. In such a scenario, what happens to the larger opposition unity, which was projected during Kumaraswamy’s swearing-in ceremony?

It is important for the opposition to stick together, at least until 2019 polls, to take on the BJP. If the coalition collapses before that, it will only benefit the BJP-led NDA as Prime Minister Narendra Modi is hoping for divisions in the opposition ranks.

Many are also suspecting the Kumaraswamy camp of attempting some behind-the-scenes moves to strike a deal with the BJP, which could sabotage opposition unity. Whatever it is, the signals from Karnataka are ominous for the opposition.


Kumaraswamy will have to curb his emotional outbursts and work out differences with Congress

Rohini Swamy
Associate Editor, ThePrint

Chief minister H. D. Kumaraswamy is known to be a very emotional person but his statement on swallowing the pain of coalition has definitely left the Congress party in an embarrassing situation.

This is not the first time that Kumaraswamy has made an emotional statement about his ascent to the chair of the chief minister of the state. He has courted controversy earlier too by saying that he became chief minister due to the Congress and not because of the people’s mandate. Kumaraswamy also said that he had sought a clear mandate from the voters, but they did not give it to him.

In this particular situation, Kumaraswamy is trying to tell the JD(S) workers that they did not deliver their promise of a full mandate. At the same time, he has also sent out a sharp message to former chief minister Siddaramaiah who he feels is making his job difficult. Siddaramaiah’s letters of objections to Kumaraswamy appears to have hurt his style of working too. That must have turned him teary-eyed.

Kumaraswamy will have to curb his emotional outbursts and will have to work out his differences because both the Congress and the JD(S) are definitely walking on thin ice. If they have to forge a united front in the Lok Sabha elections, Kumaraswamy will have to be at his diplomatic best. The Congress will have to accept that it is Kumaraswamy who is in the driver’s seat and they will just have to learn to cooperate for a safe ride to success.


Compiled by Rohini Swamy, Associate Editor at ThePrint.

 

Subscribe to our channels on YouTube, Telegram & WhatsApp

Support Our Journalism

India needs fair, non-hyphenated and questioning journalism, packed with on-ground reporting. ThePrint – with exceptional reporters, columnists and editors – is doing just that.

Sustaining this needs support from wonderful readers like you.

Whether you live in India or overseas, you can take a paid subscription by clicking here.

Support Our Journalism

1 COMMENT

  1. Prof PK Sharma,Freelance Journalist,Barnala (Punjab)

    Nothing should be read in between the lines of Karnataka Chief Minister Mr HD Kumaraswamy ‘s the poison remark !

    Ironically, this remark has not only blue colour to symbolise something of the exceptional or unique connotations but
    to my mind it did exhibit multi- colours on the” Indian Political Spectrum” !

    Now in the run up to the ensuing assembly polls in Madhya Pradesh, Rahasthan,Chhatisgarh,Mizoram and then the Grand
    Final-2019 Lok Sabha Polls every day will throw up amusing, amazing and alluding tales, dramas and melodramas of rarest
    class and order !

    This poison remark of Mr.Kumaraswamy has indeed become food for thought for critics – a politician, political science
    analysts, scribes, spokespersons and commentators like me which should be taken as a blessing in disguise stirring up the
    political arena deriving astonishing and varying political semiotics out of this utterance of Mr.Kumaraswamy !

    The post May,15 Karnataka Assembly Polls results ‘ sensational developments saga left everyone wonderstruck !

    Mr. Kumaraswamy may be emotional in remarking that running coalition government is like drinking poison !
    But paradoxically, he is forgetting that it was he who in league with Congress made NaMo led BJP drink poison when he dashed
    NaMo’s hopes of enjoying the fruits of power in Karnataka to ground even though BJP coming too near to it !

    This poison remark will sound very interesting and pleasing to the BJP after having been committed blunders and blemishes since May,15 the day Karnataka Assembly Polls results were declared.The BJP made desperate and frentic efforts to capture power by hook or crook in Karnataka after it fell eight short of the “magic number of 112. ” Ultimately for BJP, grapes proved sour in Karnataka !

    Mr.Vaman Acharya, the learned BJP Spokesperson asserted that ” how in order to survive a coalition with Congress,you will have to
    remain subserviant and leave your self-esteem behind ” Under NaMo led BJP the same music BJP leaders, rank and file are facing
    playing second fiddle and subserviant to the big boss ! Can any traces of term like “self- esteem” to be seen in ruling BJP too ?

    Then my fellow colleagues in media, political analysts and commentators are at liberty to react in the fashion they deem fit and true
    but no body can deny the fact the Congress – Janata Dal(Secular) coalition government in Karnataka saw the light of the day in the last week of May out of a necessity of time not out of any deep thought, understanding and strategy !

    If this coalition sprang out of the necessity of time then it could sustain too because of the same reason ! There will be such like flashes and flickers in future too !

    It is a writing on the wall, if opposition wants to eclipse NaMo led BJP in the ensuing assembly polls in four states and then Lok Sabha Polls, the key to success lies certainly in averting split of Opposition Votes at all. The BJP’s interest lies in breaking opposition unity and to achieve its end of repeating 2014 Lok Sabha Polls feat ! The opposition can invite trouble and commit political suicide by by allowing BJP to effect cracks in its ranks and subsequently split its votes ?

    Knowing the reality very well, even then if opposition wishes to commit the blunder of allowing split of its votes then who can forbid it from doing so ?

    Prof PK Sharma,Freelance Journalist
    Pom Anm Nest, Barnala(Punjab)

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Most Popular