What the SC order refusing to allow Reddy enter Ballari means to BJP

The BJP would have hoped to boost its prospects with the presence of Gali Janardhan Reddy in Ballari ahead of the Karnataka assembly elections 2018. However, on Monday the Supreme Court turned down a plea filed by Reddy to relax his bail conditions.

As a result of this rejection, Reddy cannot visit his hometown in Ballari. This was one of the pre-conditions imposed by the Supreme Court while granting bail to Reddy.

The BJP would have hoped that Reddy could be present in Ballari. Recently Sriramulu of the BJP had said Reddy will back in active politics. He had told me that he was ready to return to active politics and was in talks with the BJP's leadership, Sriramulu had also said.

However, there are others in the Ballari BJP who are not too confident about what Reddy could do for the party. Many feel that Reddy clout has collapsed considerably and hence waiting for him would not be the best thing to do. During the 2008 elections, he funded the party a lot apart from laying down the strategy.

Many suspect that Reddy does not enjoy that same clout now. The fact that Reddy is not around has also led to an exodus in the party. His close aides, MLAs Nagendra and Anand Singh are set to move to the Congress. It would now be up to Sriramulu to keep the flock together. The SC verdict of Monday has only made matters worse for the BJP and many close to Reddy are set to join the Congress. For the BJP, the days ahead would be very crucial and there would be a lot of damage control exercise to undertake.

OneIndia News