Former Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa has said that Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai was doing a good job and he needed the support of everyone.
The BJP veteran was here to hold meetings with party workers.
To a query that there was a “popular opinion” that things would not have gone “out of hand” if he had been the Chief Minister, Mr. Yediyurappa said the perception was not correct. “I don’t think so. Basavaraj Bommai is doing a good job as Chief Minister. He needs the support of everyone. He will surely ensure peace and harmony in society,” he said.
He later had tea with his supporters like Vishwanath Patil, former MLA, and Deepa Kudchi.
Mr. Yediyurappa’s visit to Belagavi has political significance. He is supposed to help the High Command form an opinion about the reinduction of Ramesh Jarkiholi into the Cabinet.
BJP sources say that senior leadership is worried about reported cracks in the Belagavi district unit. The unit is divided between two main groups – one led by the Jarkiholi brothers and the other that includes leaders like the Katti brothers and Laxman Savadi, former Deputy CM.
The party leadership has deputed Arun Singh, State in-charge, and C.T. Ravi to Belagavi to sort out the issue. A closed door meeting is scheduled between senior leaders and current and former legislators and other leaders in Belagavi on Wednesday. Mr. Yeddiyurappa is expected to mediate between the alleged factions, sources say.
“It seems the factions led by the Jarkiholi brothers and the Katti brothers and Mr. Savadi and other leaders are working at cross purposes. This needs to be fixed before the next Assembly polls,” a senior leader said.
This could lead to the party worker base dividing into Lingayat and non Lingayat factions. That would be bad for the party. The senior leaders will also collect the opinion of local leaders about the reentry of Mr. Ramesh Jarkiholi into the Council of Ministers and provide feedback to the decision makers in New Delhi.
