Umesh Vishwanath Katti, a familiar face from Belgaum district, is one of the staunch supporters of former chief minister B.S. Yeddyurappa. Mr Katti, who represents Hukkeri assembly constituency, has so much clout that no matter which party he joins, his victory is sealed. Mr Katti, who maintains a low profile, spoke about the activities in the BSY camp in an interview to Deccan Chronicle.
All of you in the BSY camp maintain that the crisis is an internal matter of the party. How is it an internal matter?
I still say that there is no crisis. There are some minor differences among leaders and we are confident these will be sorted them out. When we have no demands, there is no need for us to complain.
But Mr Yeddyurappa has been criticizing both central and state BJP leaders. Why?
Mr Yeddyurappa is a leader who fought for 40 years to build the party brick by brick. It was he who, as chief minister, introduced several schemes like ‘Bhagyalakshmi’, which brought laurels. Above all, he is a mass leader. He has been falsely implicated in the mining cases. There are many leaders who committed serious offences and are walking free. Why target only Mr Yeddyurappa? This is a conspiracy jointly hatched by Congress along with a few BJP leaders. Mr Yeddyurappa’s main target was Ananth Kumar, certainly not Mr Sadananda Gowda and Mr Eshwarappa. He might have taken their names thinking that taking Mr Ananth Kumar’s name alone may be politically naive. He is hurt. If the party holds talks with him, everything can be sorted out. In cricket parlance, Mr Yeddyurappa is like Chris Gayle for RCB. He is a match-winner. No one can wish away this.
Many in the party say that Shobha Karandlaje calls the shots in the BSY camp and it was she who was responsible for the ongoing crisis. Comment.
No, this false. She has grown up with the organization and so she would not betray the party or indulge any activity that could hurt the organization. On the contrary, it was a few leaders in the party who caused this. If the high command had intervened at the right time and sorted out matters, this situation would not have arisen.
If all of you are united, why do MLAs like B.P. Harish try to hit the chief minister below the belt? Is it fair?
I personally do not approve of this type of politics. I would like to tell my friends who indulge in such acts that those who indulge in such politics do not last long here.
Like many in the BJP, you too seem to have already set one foot out of the party. Political circles are abuzz with rumours that you met Congress leaders to strike a deal. What is the truth?
You show me the evidence for this. There is no truth in it. I went to New Delhi as part of the all-party delegation. Except that, I never visited New Delhi for anything. Some people keep misleading the media with such rumours. I cannot help it. I will ask you, why should I join Congress? Do you know the plight of the Congress in Karnataka? The only difference between Congress and BJP is: the Congress leaders’ fight has not come out in the open. The fight within the Congress is so intense that they do not even see eye-to-eye.
You and some others are more worried that RSS and BJP will sideline you if you continue in the party without Mr Yeddyurappa. So, you might have contemplated leaving the party. Comment
So far, we have not experienced any discrimination or felt like an outsider. Both the RSS and BJP are treating us with respect. We have no issues. So, then, what is the need for leaving the party?
You were part of Janata Dal which got divided after a bitter battle between leaders. How different and intense is the fight within BJP from the JD’s?
I feel the fight within Janata Dal was more intense and dirty. The fight started in the morning had perhaps ended by evening with leaders deciding to go different ways. Here, leaders are not fighting. I think if leaders decide to be accommodative, everything can be sorted out.
Don’t you think the BJP too will meet the same fate as Janata Dal did in 1999? Even if Mr Yeddyurappa stays back in the party, people may reject the BJP. They are disillusioned with the BJP due to the internal fight, and this time anti-incumbency could certainly work be a factor. Comment.
I do not accept your logic. If anti-incumbency were to be the deciding factor, the UPA would not have come back in 2009. You see the country’s plight. Where does the rupee stand vis-a-vis the dollar? People are not bothered about developmental work or the internal fights while casting their votes. I have my own reservations about people thinking about such issues. Elections are not fought on these issues. I feel there is no anti-incumbency. Since we have done a wonderful job to reach out to the common man, we will be in a good position to fight the elections.