The exit of veteran Janata Dal (Secular) leader Basavaraj Horatti from the party brings to an end his long association with the Janata Parivar and marks the loss of an important Lingayat face for the regional party.
The decision of Mr. Horatti, Chairman of the Legislative Council and also the senior-most member of the House, to switch over to BJP is believed to have been taken on the promise that he would continue in the post of the Upper House.
Ensuing elections
According to sources close to him, his switch to the BJP could enable him to continue as the Chairman of the Council in case he succeeds in retaining his West Teachers’ constituency, the poll for which will be held in June. The BJP is yet to announce its candidate for this constituency. The veteran leader’s record seventh term is set to end on July 4, 2022.
Sources said that Mr. Horatti has been assured by the BJP that he would be continued in the post after elections..
A senior BJP leader said that when he was elected under acrimonious circumstances in February 2021, when the then Chairman Prathapchandra Shetty was ousted from the post jointly by the BJP and JD(S), it was an understanding that Mr. Horatti would be the Chairman till his tenure ends and later it would be given to a BJP leader. “However, as things stand today, he is the senior-most member and more importantly he will be in the BJP. We are confident of his victory. But we are not sure what has been promised to him by party high command,” the BJP leader stated.
Besides, there are caste and regional balances that is working within the BJP currently. Sources aware of the developments said that the BJP has not yet decided on its Deputy Chairman candidate despite the Upper House not having one since former Deputy Chairman M.K. Pranesh was re-elected to the House in December 2021.
Though the party was expected to take a decision in February, the House proceedings were washed out in the session that month. The BJP, which nominated Y.A. Narayanswamy as its Chief Whip, did not announce the name for Deputy Chairman during the recently concluded Budget session either. In fact, through the Budget session, it was senior members from BJP and JD(S) who managed the House proceedings when Mr. Horatti took breaks. Sources pointed out that the party could wait till the election results of Mr. Horatti before taking decisions on the posts.
After Konareddy
Meanwhile, for the JD(S), though Mr. Horatti’s announcement does not come as a shock, it is the second loss in the recent months. Earlier, it was former legislator from Navalgund Konareddy who hopped on to the Congress citing local conditions that would not enable him to win on JD(S) ticket.
Sources in the JD(S) said that though efforts were made to retain Mr. Horatti in the last few weeks, they did not bear results since Mr. Horatti was keen on heading to BJP to test his future political fortunes. “Multiple meetings with H.D. Kumaraswamy did not help. Finally, the veteran leader was asked to choose what was best for him,” sources said.
When Mr. Konareddy decided to sever ties with the party due to local conditions, Mr. Kumaraswamy had wished him luck, sources pointed out.
