The people of the area are still unable to believe that Yeddyurappa has left active politics. But they said he was a “born fighter” and they would continue to support him. Such is his charisma and influence that many residents News18 spoke to said they cannot think of voting for any other leader.
‘No BJP without BSY’
Nagaraj, a local spice trader, was listening intently to Yeddyurappa’s speech, which he delivered on the floor of the Karnataka Assembly. The emotional BJP leader had just announced his retirement from active politics and said this would be the last time he would stand inside the Vidhana Soudha as an MLA.
“There was a time when Shikaripura was backward and Yediyurappa brought development through drinking water projects, good roads, taluka offices and marriage halls. He has worked hard and that is why we all like him so much. We all are proud of him. Even if Yediyurappa does not come to seek votes from us, we will still vote in his favour,” said Nagaraj.
“Without BSY there is no BJP, and BSY stands for BJP,” said Geetamma, a homemaker born in Shikaripura who has seen the city grow over the years.
“His contribution in Shikaripura, Shimoga and Karnataka is commendable. Even as a corporator, MLA or Chief Minister, he always thought about the people first and how he could make our lives comfortable. This is a quality we admire.
“The fields had dried up but now there is water in abundance, thanks to the water schemes brought in by him. Yediyurappa ensured water connection to every household,” said Parimala, a vegetable vendor.
‘Hindus and Muslims live like brothers’
Shivamogga has also been an area that has seen a lot of communal conflict. At the height of the Hijab, Halal and Tipu controversies, the Muslims of the region said that if it was known, it would have bad consequences for the leader.
“Barring an isolated incident, there has been no violence or communal tension. Hindus and Muslims live like brothers and Yediyurappa has always respected our community,” said Basha Bhai, who runs his business in Shikaripura.
‘Never seen a helicopter…’
The newly inaugurated Shivamogga airport was a dream nurtured by Yediyurappa since 2006-07. He laid the foundation stone of the airport on June 20, 2008, soon after the BJP was brought to power for the first time in the South Indian state. Developed at a cost of around Rs 450 crore, it was formally inaugurated by the Prime Minister. Narendra Modi On February 27, which coincidentally happened to be Yeddyurappa’s 80th birthday.
“There are many people in Shikaripura Shimoga district who have never even seen a helicopter in their life. Shikaripura is largely an agricultural community and some have never even seen Bangalore. Now we have our own airport, we have our own Shimoga airport,” said Roopa Manjunath, who is thrilled about the Shivamoga airport.
‘Being a man of the people’
Bookanakere Siddalingappa Yediyurappa – popularly known as BSY – was born on February 27, 1943 in Bookanakere village of Mandya district to Puttathyamma and Siddalingappa. He was named after the presiding deity in the Shiva temple at Yediyur in Tumakuru.
He earned his BA degree from Mandya College and later worked as a clerk in the Social Welfare Department of the Government of Karnataka in 1965. Unable to handle the monotonous existence of a clerk, he resigned and moved to Shikaripura where he joined as a clerk. Clerk in Virbhadra Shastri’s rice mill.
Here he fell in love with Maithra Devi, the daughter of a mill owner, and married her. He opened a hardware shop but his love for politics and his fighting spirit drew him to the RSS. A born leader, he quickly rose through the ranks of the organization and soon became the district head of the Shivamogga RSS.
Over the years when he entered active politics, he met Padmanabha Bhat, KS Guruswamy and SB Mathad, who were among his many close friends, who shared his passion for fighting for the rights of the people and treated him immensely. Stay Connected
“He was in the RSS and I was there too, that’s how we met. In our time there was no Jana Sangh in Shikaripura. We helped set it up,” Bhat told News18.
‘heart of gold’
Recalling his days when he used to participate in protests demanding justice for farmers, coolie workers, mill workers, bonded laborers, or any section of the society, Bhat also emphasized that Yediyurappa should He was always considered a man of the people.
“I have participated in many dharnas with them and have also written slogans for them. He has a heart of gold and is always ready to listen to people’s problems,” said Bhat as he headed towards Shikaripura after two days of worship and festivities around the leader’s 80th birthday.
It was the 1970s that saw Yeddyurappa’s meteoric rise. He was elected as a member of the Shikaripura Municipal Council in 1973 and went to jail during the Emergency. In 1977, he was re-elected councilor and was at the forefront of fighting for the rights of landless agricultural laborers and bonded laborers in the district.
During that time the Karnataka Forest Department claimed to have planted eucalyptus saplings on land given to landless agricultural labourers. He successfully opposed the move, and was instrumental in leading a group of over 1,700 bonded laborers from Shivamogga to stage a sit-in at the Deputy Commissioner’s office, demanding their immediate release.
CM four times, but did not complete a term
Credited with building the BJP in Karnataka brick by brick to bring the party to power in 2008, Yeddyurappa missed his first chance to become chief minister in 2004. The BJP emerged as the single largest party, but the Congress and the JD(S) forged an alliance and formed a government under the leadership of Dharam Singh.
Not one to face defeat, the politically astute leader staged a coup and joined hands with Deve Gowda’s son HD Kumaraswamy in a 20-month rotation deal, but his tenure lasted just seven days when Kumaraswamy withdrew support. He was made chief minister once again in 2008 as he brought the BJP to power, but had to step down in July 2011 after being convicted in an illegal mining case. He has topped once again in 2018 and 2019.
Mathad, another farmer leader from Shikaripura and a close aide of Yediyurappa, calls them “special forces”.
“Yeddyurappa is not the name of a person, it is the name of a special force. I will give a small example. When he was the state president of BJP and came to Shimoga from Bangalore, he came to know that there was a shortage of kerosene. Even before going home, he sat on a dharna and called all the officers in charge to restore the supply.”
‘Alive for the people’
In his early days as a politician, Yediyurappa was brutally attacked while going to Shikaripura on a bicycle. He was hit on the head by a conductor of the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC), identified as Churi Shivamurthy. The assailant said that he was deployed by Venkatappa, the then MLA, who wanted to oust Yediyurappa from the scene as he was more powerful. Left to die on the road, he was immediately taken to a hospital where he remained unconscious for about a month.
Yediyurappa’s younger sister BS Prema said, “Before he fainted, my brother asked the doctors not to tell me about the attack.”
‘Naughty and Playful Child’
Prema recalled how Yediyurappa was a mischievous and playful child. He said that he would always be found playing some sport like cricket or volleyball, which would anger his grandparents, with whom he was living.
“I came to know from the newspapers that he was attacked. I went to him. “He is extremely attached to me and whenever I go to meet him, he forces me to stay for a few months,” Prema told News18.
His friends said that even when his wife Mithra Devi reached the hospital, the leader’s first reaction was – ‘Yes I am alive, not for you but for the people so that I can help them and solve their problems.’
Recalling a childhood incident when he was hurt after a game of cricket and his forehead was bleeding, Prema said he covered his head with a towel and reached home and when his grandparents showed him the wound When asked, he refused to do so.
“Instead he told me to keep quiet and gave me a Rs 5 coin. But I couldn’t stop it and told my grandmother about it, who immediately asked her to bandage it. Anna then came to me and asked me to return the Rs 5 coin as I had not kept my promise,” she said with a smile.
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