Nikhil the dummy, Prajwal the stain: Gowda clan’s credibility collapses
The Deve Gowda family’s decision to send its youngest heir, Nikhil Kumaraswamy, to lead the JD(S) contingent at the Dharmasthala rally with the BJP has been received across Karnataka as a great farce. The ridicule stems from two unavoidable truths: the collapse of credibility within the Gowda clan, and the shadow of disgrace hanging over the family because of Prajwal Revanna, direct cousin of Nikhil. To begin with, the choice of Nikhil exposed the bankruptcy of leadership in JD(S). He is no stranger to the electorate, but his record is one of repeated rejection by electorate — three failed assembly bids and one lost parliamentary race. For such a political novice to head the team in Dharmasthala, at a time when public anger is raw and unforgiving, made the family look tone-deaf and desperate. The optics were disastrous: Nikhil standing awkwardly with the Heggades brought neither honour to the temple administrators nor credibility to the JD(S). The question naturally arises: why d...