Karnataka will have a new chief minister in Hubli’s native son Jagadish Shettar, expected to be sworn in before the assembly convenes for the monsoon session on July 16. Opposition from the lone naysayer, BJP patriarch L.K. Advani crumbled in the face of an internal intelligence report that BJP national president Nitin Gadkari presented to him, during a one on one meeting on Thursday which states that the saffron party would lose its southern seat if it went to the polls with anyone but a leader from the Lingayat community.
Mr Advani’s reservations over naming Shettar as chief minister and dropping present incumbent D.V. Sadananda Gowda, stemmed from being seen as yielding to blackmail tactics by former chief minister, B.S. Yeddyurappa, who had persuaded Mr Shettar and eight other ministers to resign from the D.V. Sadananda Gowda cabinet last week, precipitating the crisis.
Mr Advani’s anger at developments in the Karnataka BJP stalled moves to replace Mr Gowda, seen as Mr Clean but unable to lead the party to victory in polls. The change backed by virtually everyone but Mr Advani, saw party national president, Nitin Gadkari call on Mr Advani on Thursday evening to push for an end to the Karnataka crisis.