An assembly election rally in Karnataka
Karnataka Polls 2023
By Shankar Raj
Calling names or using foul language is nothing new in Karnataka politics. People have learnt to take it in their stride as they themselves are victims of abuse at government offices and public places.
There is no surprise therefore that as the campaign winds down for the May 10 Karnataka Assembly elections, one thing that stood out like a sore thumb in the national scene was the foul language that was used during the campaigning. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was called a snake by the All India Congress Committee (AICC) president Mallikarjun Kharge and a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader called Congress leader Sonia Gandhi a ‘vishkanya‘ while another threatened to eliminate Kharge and his family.
Well-known political scientist and professor emeritus for Commonwealth Studies at the University of London, Professor James Manor, considered an authority on Karnataka’s politics for four decades, was quoted in the media as saying that “this election has seen a lot of intemperate language. Many voters in this socially conservative state view it with distaste. But they have seen plenty of it before, so they may shrug it off”.
Ironically, before campaigning started, the Congress Party had decided not to attack Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is also the BJP’s star campaigner, personally. This was from past experience as Modi always used abuses hurled at him to his advantage. But the rule was broken by the Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge himself and what followed was a free for all.
Besides, Congress had also resolved not to make any controversial statements about Muslims and Lingayats. Often in the past, BJP used such slurs to turn the tables on their opponents and Congress was very aware of the strategy. But they fell into the trap cleverly laid by the BJP
First Kharge walked in, followed by his party colleague and former chief minister Siddaramaiah, who gave into the temptation and fell into BJP’s trap.
While Kharge dubbed Modi a “venomous snake’’ at an election rally in Ron in Gadag district, Siddaramaiah, in an off-the-cuff outburst, insulted the powerful Lingayat community saying: “There’s already a Lingayat CM [Basavaraj Bommai]. He is the root of all corruption in the state. ”
To make matters worse, Kharge’s son and former minister Priyank Kharge, during a rally referred to Prime Minister Narendra Modi as “nalayak beta” (incompetent son).
The BJP was quick to latch on to these verbal attacks and its prominent leaders started slamming the Congress and its senior functionaries. Modi himself retorted to Kharge’s jibe, saying the people of Karnataka will respond on May 10, while adding Congress has hurled “91 cases of abuse” at him.
But the BJP too succumbed to the temptation. One of its lawmakers and former minister Basanagouda Patil Yatnal described former Congress president and a Member of Parliament Sonia Gandhi as a vishkanya (venomous woman).
Yatnal is the BJP candidate for the Karnataka Legislative Assembly elections from Vijayapura, and is in the list of star campaigners of the party.
Towards the end of the campaign, the Congress Party alleged that the BJP had hatched a “sinister and “ugly plot” to “kill” Kharge and his family.
At a media briefing, the Congress played an audio clip, claiming that the BJP candidate from Chittapur, Manikanth Rathod, used derogatory language for Kharge and could be heard talking about eliminating him and his family.
“The BJP leaders are now hatching a plot to murder Mallikarjun Kharge and his family members. This is now clear from the recording of BJP’s candidate from Chittapur who also happens to be the blue-eyed boy of PM Modi and chief minister Bommai,” Congress leader Randeep Surjewala said.
“I know the prime minister will remain mute, and so will Karnataka police and the Election Commission of India. But people of Karnataka will not remain mute and will give a befitting reply” he said.
However, the big question is: Will these verbal attacks and what look like bizarre charges, hurt the prospects of the BJP and the Congress?
“The war of words has reached acerbic proportions on both sides. How strongly and strategically does the rival take on such personal attacks will determine if it will be a game-changing comment. Bear in mind how the ‘chaiwalla’ remark transformed the face of the Lok Sabha election campaign in 2014,” Sandeep Shastri, psephologist, stated.
But several BJP functionaries are gung-ho and cite past poll results to show how personal attacks on Modi have backfired. It all began with then Congress president Sonia Gandhi referring to Modi as “maut ka saudagar” (merchant of death) while campaigning during the 2007 Gujarat assembly elections. The BJP won 117 of the 182 seats in that election. Again in 2017 in Gujarat, senior Congress functionary Mani Shankar Aiyar called him “neech aadmi” (vile man). Modi presented himself as a victim and used Aiyar’s attack to the BJP’s advantage. The BJP retained office by winning 99 seats.
In 2022 in Gujarat, senior Congress leader Madhusudan Mistry said Congress would show Modi his “aukaat”, and Kharge called him “Raavan”. In the run-up to the 2014 Lok Sabha election, Aiyar had called Modi a “chaiwala” and claimed that he would never become PM. Modi turned the tables on Congress and launched a massive campaign titled ‘Chai pe charcha’, helping the BJP win 282 of the 543 Lok Sabha seats.
Ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the then Congress president Rahul Gandhi ran a campaign titled “chowkidar chor hai (the guard is a thief)” after Modi labelled himself the “chowkidar” of the nation. BJP again reaped the advantage.
Will the BJP now derive political mileage from personal attacks against Modi? Or will the Congress Party score a last-minute goal? The results on May 13, 2023, will provide the answer.
*Shankar Raj is a former Editor of The New Indian Express, Karnataka and Kerala, and writes regularly on current affairs.
