04 November,2011 06:45 AM IST | | B V Shiva Shankar
The B S Yeddyurappa camp yesterday got a glimmer of hope with the High Court granting bail to the former chief minister in one of the two land scam cases.
If the news has brought smile on the glum faces of his supporters, it sent shivers down the spine of the rival camp, led by H N Ananth Kumar.
B S Yeddyurappa
According to sources, Yeddyurappa is likely to walk free today as the court is likely to grant him bail in the other case also.
Justice B V Pinto granted him bail in PCR-2, one of the five private complaints filed by JD(S)-backed advocates Sirajin Basha and K N Balaraj. The court is expected to decide on the bail application in another case, PCR-3, today.
Among the five cases, Yeddyurappa has filed for anticipatory bail in two (PCR- 4 and PCR-5), while the last case is yet to come before the Lokayukta special court.
The other two cases for irregularities done in an irrigation project and involvement in illegal mining as mentioned in the Loklayukta report are at the FIR stage. If the High Court grants Yeddyurppa bail in PCR-3, the power equation in the ruling party will surely see a drastic change.
According to political observers, leaders like Ananth Kumar and state president K S Eswarappa would be in the line of fire. As Yeddyurappa wants to lead the party in the next elections, he, according to his supporters, would demand the post of party state president replacing Eswarappa.
And just in case Eswarappa refuses to vacate the post for the Ligayat leader, Yeddyurappa's camp is understood to be ready with documents to fix the state president in a graft case.
Seeing the writing on the wall, a jittery Eswarappa said, "Yeddyurappa is our leader and there is no doubt that the party will go to the polls under his leadership. As far as the post of state president is concerned, there are certain norms in the party and its up to the high command to take a call in this matter."
The other two leaders, likely to face fury of Yeddyurappa faction, are R Ashok, the minister for home and transport, and S A Ramdas, the medical education minister. Both of them are already facing corruption charges.
Ashok, who was initially with Yeddyurappa, switched sides just before the submission of the Lokayukta report on July 27.
Doing damage control of sorts, a jittery Ashok has already started singing praises of Yeddyurappa. "The BJP came to power in the state only because of Yeddyurappa's efforts. He is just an accused and not a convict.
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I welcome the decision to grant him bail and I am looking forward to strengthen his hands as a follower," he said.
But, according to BJP sources, the sudden shower of praises on Yeddyurappa won't serve the purpose as Ashok's bitter rival V Somanna, a close confidant of Yeddyurappa, is in no mood to compromise.
Moreover, Somanna suspects Ashok's hand in the slipper-gate episode where a BJP worker attacked the former with a slipper.
Nursing his bruised ego, Somanna allegedly retaliated by unearthing a corruption case against the state home
minister.
