Many in the Congress believe that Byatrayanapura MLA Krishna Byre Gowda is one of the few in the state Congress who has direct access to All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary Rahul Gandhi. While addressing party workers at Davanagere during a recent visit, Mr Gandhi mentioned Krishna Byre Gowda’s name a couple of times along with those of Union ministers.

A suave and decent politician to the core, he is diplomatic even when he expresses his dissent and gives his rivals their share of respect. A year agp, Mr Byre Gowda would not have agreed to an interview. But, he is a changed man now and seemed to have gained a lot of confidence as he spoke about various issues concerning the party.
Here are excerpts from an interview.

It is not often that one sees groupism rearing its head in an opposition party. Is this similar to the infighting the BJP is witnessing?
You can’t call it infighting. Perhaps, you could say it is an expression of multiple voices. It is quite natural in the Congress because our party works like an umbrella organisation. We represent the true India giving space to different castes and several communities. You see in Karnataka, JD(S) will not be acknowledged by many segments of the population. The BJP is no exception. Perhaps, the current activity is just tension which has never really reached a breaking point. We have a system to find a solution to such tensions.

Compared to the BJP’s internal crisis, how different is yours?
You cannot compare the BJP crisis with ours. They have stooped to a new low and showed how bad an internal fight can become. In the past, we had seen the Janata Dal getting split. Even that was not as bad as the BJP’s fights. It is quite natural for leaders to have aspirations. They do a bit of lobbying. But, ultimately, we respect our senior leaders particularly our top brass. This is not the case with the BJP.

To be specific, do you see a confrontation building between the Lingayats and Vokkaligas in the Congress? What do you have to say about Lingayat MLAs holding a meeting?
The Congress is reflective of our society. Whatever trend or tension you see in society, can be seen in the Congress too. Identity-based politics is a reality. You can’t deny it. There is no easy solution to this. If you, as a political party, refuse to acknowledge this, you will be the loser. You have seen BJP falling prey to this mistake. I feel, you have to harness and harmonise such conflicts. Negotiate with the different groups to bring cohesion. To the second part of your question, I do not agree with such meetings on the basis of caste. In my view, caste can be a merit only if you have experience, can perform and have commitment to the party.

Then what about the meeting held at Mr S.M. Krishna’s residence recently?
It was not a caste-based meeting. We went to request him to take a more active role in state politics. We did not discuss caste calculations or anything related to that. We need Mr Krishna, Mr Mallikarjun Kharge, Mr Veerappa Moily and other seniors to bring the party to power. There is nothing wrong in central leaders coming back to work here. They have the experience. Among the recent CMs, Mr Krishna emerged as a reference point. His presence will bring a lot of energy to the party.
Many say the Congress has failed to play the role of an effective opposition party.

I do not think so. Operation Lotus was opposed by the Congress and a small section of intellectuals. Unfortunately, it had the blessings of the public. The BJP virtually bulldozed the voice of the Opposition and the legislature session did not take place properly for three years when Mr Yeddyurappa was chief minister. We fought the government well on the illegal mining issue. Unfortunately, people did not recognise the worth of our fight, which led to this impression.

You were not active during the last few legislature sessions but was very active this time. Why?
I was handling various responsibilities that involved a lot of travelling. In the past, legislature sessions hardly completed their duration. Now, I am focussing on my constituency, so I could focus on legislature business too.

You revived the youth Congress in the state. Except for holding protests against the government, Youth Congress workers are not doing anything constructive. Comment.
It is sad that the media highlights only negative issues. The organisation is in transition. They undertake constructive activity including cadre building exercises. Once the change is effected, you will get a different picture of the Youth Congress.

You equate dissent in the party with tension. This tension may spiral out of control once you reach the stage of distributing Assembly tickets. You may have a problem of plenty. You have to consider those from other parties who want to join the Congress and contest elections.
Though announcing candidates at the last minute may bring us an advantage, the majority of our party workers feel candidates should be announced well in advance so that they can create a wave in their favour. I think in three months’ time, you may start seeing the action happening. Of course, it will be difficult for our party to select candidates.

Finally, what is your take on the 2013 Assembly polls?
It’s too early to speculate.