Come watch with us Kar'nataka’, a political thriller minus any ‘censor cuts’

Now, when a political drama is unfolding in the southern state, voters are definitely not amused as they firmly believe that "dirty politics" is a blot on the face of democracy.

Bengaluru, May 16: Bengaluru, the bustling capital city of Karnataka, has a rich, vibrant theatre culture. Kannada, English, Hindi, Bengali and Tamil plays are staged in some of iconic podiums in the IT hub on a regular basis. Patrons of theatre encourage such initiatives by flocking at theatre halls in sizeable numbers.

Along with Bengaluru, rest of Karnataka too loves its share of "drama" a lot. The state is also a proud custodian of some of the finest literary and cinematic works in the country. So when it comes to "drama" Karnataka is always at the forefront.

Now, when a political drama is unfolding in the southern state, voters are definitely not amused as they firmly believe that "dirty politics" is a blot on the face of democracy.

Since the last few months, the southern state has witnessed a great deal of political activities, thanks to the Karnataka Assembly elections 2018. Both the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) tried their best to come to power in one of the most advantaged states of the country.

During the campaign season, politicians cutting across party lines injected a lot of bigotry, hatred and factionalism to woo voters in the state. The elections results were announced on Tuesday, but the drama seems to be not ending any time soon. As the voters gave a fractured mandate (the BJP got 104 seats, the Congress 78 and the Janata Dal (Secular) (JD(S)) along with its alliance partner, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), got 38 seats), political parties are leaving no stone unturned to come to power.

In the 224-member Assembly in Karnataka, a party or an alliance needs at least 113 seats to stake claim to form the next government in the state. While the BJP has emerged as the single largest party, the Congress and the JD(S) which on Tuesday evening stitched a quick post-poll alliance has the number, 116 MLAs.

Leaders of both the BJP and the Congress-JD(S) alliance met Karnataka governor Vajubhai Vala on Tuesday evening to stake their respective claim to form the next government. On Wednesday, BS Yeddyurappa, the chief ministerial candidate of the BJP, once again met the governor and staked claim to form the new government in the state.

Regarding the Congress-JD(S) alliance's claim, the governor is yet to take a call. Amid all these developments, murmurs of horse-trading, resort politics and operation kamala (a term coined by the BJP back in 2008 to win over MLAs from the opposition parties) are growing louder and louder.

Several leaders from both the Congress and the JD(S) told reporters that they have been offered a huge amount of cash by the BJP to switch sides. The BJP claims that many disgruntled Congress and JD(S) MLAs are in talks with the saffron party. The Congress also claims that several BJP leaders want to join the alliance.

Now, news is rife that MLAs of both the Congress and the JD(S) will be packed in buses and taken to resorts in the outskirts of Bengaluru to avoid poaching ahead of the floor test. Both the JD(S) and the Congress fear that their MLAs would be poached by the BJP.

As the worst of politics unfolds in Karnataka, voters are hoping that the state gets a new government soon. Voters also want the new government to be honest and stable. However, looking at the beginning of the journey of a new government, it does not augur well for Karnataka.