With State Assembly elections a year away, parties have begun strategizing for the polls. The Congress used the presence of its national president in the state to galvanise its cadres in preparation for its campaign. The ruling BJP is waiting for the central leadership of the party to take a final call on whether the incumbent will continue or his predecessor will return. On this decision hinges the strategy of the party for the poll next year. The JD(S) is keen to corner a reasonable number of seats to ensure that it emerges as king maker in the event of an assembly with no party enjoying a clear majority.

One of the ironies of Karnataka politics has been that in both the Congress and BJP, decision making on leadership issues is not made in the State but far away in distant Delhi. Electoral politics across the country has visibly and conclusively demonstrated the fact that state level leadership even in a national party matters. This has been categorically proved in Uttar Pradesh as also in those states where BJP and Congress are in power either independently or with their allies. This lesson would be useful for political parties hoping to come to power in the state to keep in mind. National parties are about a national presence and not about centralized decision making!

In Karnataka, the helplessness (and often hopelessness) of local level leaders is seen when they have to openly admit that they are awaiting directions from Delhi. In the BJP, the Chief Minister finds his hands tied when it comes to expanding his Cabinet. The former chief minister is on the other hand now on the offensive and the next moment on the retreat, in the light of the political cues from Delhi.

In the other BJP ruled states, the position and status of their Chief Ministers have a lot to do with the stability of their governments. Uttarakhand proved to the BJP what happened when Chief Ministers were changed at the whims and fancies of the Central leadership. Thus, the ‘leave it to the Central leadership’ attitude would weaken the chances of the party in the next polls.

The case of the state Congress is very similar. There are as many factions as potential leaders and Chief Ministerial aspirants. In the past, this has allowed the party to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. Today also, everyone in the Congress looks to the high command for decisions on how to strategise for the next polls. Each leader acts with caution as they want to make sure that they continue to remain in the race for leadership if and when the party comes to power. In defending their own base, the larger picture (of making a bid to come to power) is often forgotten.

Voters today across the state are looking at the political capacities of their leaders while exercising their franchise. This may be in a Lok Sabha poll or assembly poll. Karnataka is clearly no exception. The two national parties need to project credible leaders at the state level who are seen as being in sync with political reality. Winning or losing an election is about the face you project on the ground and not just about those who lead from Delhi.

(Dr Shastri is a keen student of Karnataka politics and the Pro Vice Chancellor, Jain University)