BENGALURU: As chief minister Basavaraj Bommai completes six months in office on Thursday, he faces several challenges ahead of the 2023 assembly polls.
When he took over as CM on July 27 last year, replacing Lingayat strongman BS Yediyurappa, many questions were raised about his leadership abilities. However, he is trying hard to firm his grip on the cabinet, administration and the party.
After a shake-up in the bureaucracy, the new chief minister has tried to effectively drive officers, as they play a big role in the success of governments, especially in the implementation of ambitious projects of ruling parties and chief ministers.
Former CMs Siddaramaiah, BS Yediyurappa and HD Kumaraswamy were considered strong leaders as they had a hold on the bureaucracy. Bommai, who is known to be “astute” in political circles, has been confidently making efforts to dispel this image.
A senior minister in Bommai’s cabinet said the bureaucracy is like an uncontrolled horse and you cannot run a successful government if you fail to control the officers.
On the political front, Bommai is facing multiple challenges, the biggest of which will be to accommodate “the right person for the right job”, when he rejigs his cabinet and the party organisation. Doing a balancing act while making political appointments in certain boards and commissions will be yet another task.
As a close confidant of Yediyurappa, the CM is under pressure to accommodate his younger son BY Vijayendra. While some believe Vijayendra’s entry into the cabinet will help Bommai, many also think it might weaken his leadership as Yediyurappa could look to control the government and the party again through his son.
Bommai’s other immediate big challenge is to overcome the financial crisis and present an impressive maiden budget. He also has to revive the economy and livelihood opportunities in the state, which have gone bleak due to the pandemic’s second and third waves.
With assembly polls slated for 2023, Bommai will have to present popular schemes and programmes. He will have to announce major packages, especially with regard to water and irrigation in the backdrop of Congress’ Mekedatu padayatra and ensure adequate funds to ramp up infrastructure, mainly in Bengaluru.
The CM will have to find an effective counter to Congress campaign seeking implementation of drinking and irrigation projects pertaining to Cauvery, Mahadayi and Krishna. The opposition Congress is planning to turn water into a major election issue in rural parts of Karnataka.
The results of BBMP polls, which is expected to be held mid-year, will be crucial for the ruling party to gain momentum ahead of assembly elections. Bommai will have to win the civic polls convincingly to prove his electoral prowess since some within the party are still questioning his leadership capabilities, following a series of poll debacles last year.
Asked to comment on the CM’s performance over the last six months, Vishwas Shetty, a political expert said: “So far, more than his political feats, his administrative performance has been a highlight.”
