Mayawati issues ultimatum to ally Deve Gowda

Bengaluru: With a strong possibility that Karnataka is heading towards a hung Assembly the question that Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati reportedly asked her ally — former Prime Minister and Janata Dal (Secular) supremo H.D. Deve Gowda on the sidelines of her maiden rally in Mysuru on April 25, was whom he had decided to partner with, to form the next coalition government?

According to sources, Mr Deve Gowda was reportedly not prepared for the salvo and very diplomatically skirted the issue. But Mayawati persisted and reminded him that JD(S) has to live up to its “secular credentials” and hence should stay away from the BJP.

She allegedly told Mr Deve Gowda that he and his party have to play a larger role in the grand alliance of the Third Front in the  2019 Lok Sabha elections for a ‘BJP Mukt Bharat’ (India free of the BJP). She also stressed upon him that the BSP-JD(S) combine should install a Dalit as the next chief minister of Karnataka.

“Though she publicly will not support the Congress, together the BSP-JD(S) will support senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge as the new CM,” said the source.

Te initial deal between the BJP — JD(S) has failed and there are under –the-table deals among all three parties, Congress, BJP and the JD(S) that have been kept in abeyance for May 15. While Mr Deve Gowda would like to partner with the Congress, his son and former chief minister is said to be inclined towards the BJP. “The final outcome will depend upon the numbers that each of them cobbles up in the three cornered elections. If the JD(S) is able to get more than 50 seats then they will put the pressure on their ally to install their candidate as the CM,” said a well placed source. Internal surveys by the JD(S) point to a rising popularity, the source added. Though Mayawati’s rally in Mysuru was thinly attended because of a three hour delay, the joint BSP-JD(S) rally in Chitradurga on Thursday had attracted huge crowds.