Davanagere, 4 March

Fresh signs of factionalism have surfaced in Karnataka BJP with senior leader and Parliamentary Board member BS Yediyurappa drawing criticism for announcing prospective candidates for the 2028 General Assembly elections.

At a function held in Honnali on 28 February, to mark the birthday of former minister MP Renukacharya, Yediyurappa publicly named likely candidates for several Assembly constituencies in Davanagere district. The move has triggered resentment among local party leaders, who have termed it "a violation of party protocol" and demanded that the announcement be withdrawn.

Leaders argue that candidate selection is the prerogative of the BJP’s central parliamentary board and not to be declared unilaterally at public events. Some have also alleged that instead of resolving internal differences, Yediyurappa’s actions have deepened factional divides.

The district unit has reportedly been faction-ridden from the last Lok Sabha elections, with groups aligned to former MP GM Siddeshwara and Renukacharya at odds. Former chief minister JagadishShettar had been tasked with reconciling the factions, though with limited success.

Voicing dissent publicly, BJP’s former district general secretary Shantaraj Patil said he had not expected such a breach of organisational discipline from a senior leader.

A protest meeting has been convened on 5 March by another faction of the district unit, led by GM Siddeshwara and MLA BP Harish, to raise the issue before party leadership. The matter is also expected to be brought to the attention of state in-charge Radha Mohan Singh.

What BSY announced

The candidates announced by Yediyurappa are MP Renukacharya from Honnali, Madal Virupakshappa from Channagiri, Chandrashekar Pujari from Harihar, Lokikere Nagaraj from Davanagere North, SV Ramachandra from Jagalur, Karunakara Reddy from Harapanahalli. Party insiders say most of them are the supporters of Renukacharya.