From Jarkiholis to Kempegowdas: Curious case of 'brother politics' in Karnataka

As Karnataka goes to polls next month, here is a look at the sibling politics that has become a key part of the political spectrum in the southern state. The political parties use these 'brothers' to gain power and in return, the siblings attain political influence in the state and sometimes across the country.

Hyderabad:Politics in India has proven to be a cocktail of ideology, dynasty, caste, religion, and last but not least family. In Karnataka, the state that is going to polls next month, and the results of which will be a key indicator of the political slant in southern India, family politics in recent years has interestingly branched out to what can be called 'brother politics'.

'Brother politics' pertains to siblings holding money and muscle power in a certain region of the state. The political parties use these 'brothers' to gain power and in return, the siblings attain political influence in the state and sometimes across the country, which they use to gain even more money and muscle power. There are at least four such cases of 'brother politics' in the current political spectrum in Karnataka.

The most famous names among brother politicians are the Bellary brothers, who built their empire from the mining business and are known for their political clout. Other notable factions of brother politicians include the Jarkiholi brothers, HD brothers, and DK brothers.

The Jarkiholi familyof legislators is rich and wields immense political power in the Belagavi district, which makes up 18 of the 224 assembly constituencies in Karnataka. The Jarkiholis are five brothers, of which Ramesh and Balachandra are BJP MLAs, Satish is a Congress MLA and working president of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC), Lakhan is a recently elected independent member of the legislative council (MLC), and Bhimashi had dabbled in politics previously. All are key players in Belagavi politics. The Jarkiholis also command the loyalty of two BJP MLAs, Mahesh Kumathalli and Srimanth Patil, who had defected from the Congress in 2019 along with Ramesh Jarkiholi.

While the Bellary brothers gained their fortunes from mining and alleged irregularities, the Jarkiholis are landlords and sugar barons. The Jarkiholis have taken on each other in polls in the past, a ploy that insiders claim is an attempt to ensure no alternate leadership emerges. The BJP, which is one seat short of a simple majority in the legislative council, may need Lakhan Jarkiholi's support to ensure the passage of key bills.

In the 2018 Karnataka Assembly polls, while Ramesh and Satish fought on a Congress ticket, Balachandra was fielded by the BJP. The upcoming Karnataka bypolls will see the entry of Lakhan, the youngest of the Jarkiholi brothers, into the political arena. Lakhan, fielded by the Congress, has been pitted against his brother Ramesh from the Gokak constituency. The family feud between the two brothers, Ramesh and Satish, for ministership in the Siddaramaiah cabinet was the starting point of trouble that led to the widening of their differences.

The Reddy brothers of Bellaryare another powerful faction of brother politicians from Karnataka. They were supporters of the BJP and played an instrumental role in strengthening the party's presence in Bellary. Janardhana Reddy, a former Karnataka tourism minister, played a significant role in the Bharatiya Janata Party forming the government in Karnataka in 2008. The first time Operation Kamala (Operation Lotus), to engineer the defection of rival party legislators was launched by the Reddy brothers of Bellary.

The Bellary brothers built their empire from the mining business and are known for their political clout. The family comprises Gali Janardhana Reddy, G. Karunakara Reddy, G. Somashekhara Reddy, and B. Sriramulu, all of whom wield considerable power in the state. Despite the brothers constantly changing their allegiance from one party to another, the shift has not affected their hold over Bellary in North Karnataka.

This move for the Reddy brothers into the BJP gave them a big boost in the political arena as they became associated with late Union minister Sushma Swaraj. Swaraj took on Congress chief Sonia Gandhi in the 1999 Lok Sabha general elections from Bellary. Though the BJP leader lost, the Reddy brothers and Sriramulu grew close to her, say observers. They were also in touch with the Congress’s YS Rajasekhara Reddy, the then chief minister of undivided Andhra Pradesh.

In 2001, the Reddy brothers started the Obulapuram Mining Company (OMC) with an initial capital of Rs 10 lakh, and within nine years the company had a turnover of about Rs 3,000 crore. Janardhana Reddy used his political connections and took over other mining companies one after another to build his empire.

At his peak, his native region was called “Republic of Bellary”. He was made a minister in the Yediyurappa government after an assembly election victory in 2008. He also partnered with YSR’s son Jagan Mohan Reddy in Brahmani Steels based in Jagan’s hometown Kadapa.

The lavish lifestyle of the Reddy brothers and Sriramulu at the time was unimaginable. If they were in Delhi or in some other place for a meeting, they would fly back to Bellary for lunch or dinner and head back again in their choppers. Reddy had got a 24×7 flying clearance from the civil aviation ministry.

H.D brothers:Haradanahalli Deve Gowda Revanna, the elder son of the former prime minister H.D. Deve Gowda, always aspired to become chief minister of Karnataka. But his dream remains unfulfilled, and people close to Revanna say it will continue to remain unfulfilled as long as his brother H.D. Kumaraswamy is in politics.

Revanna, however, was known as 'Super CM'. He earned this moniker through Kumaraswamy’s first term as chief minister (2006-07) and his second term (2018-19) as well. Revanna enjoyed a role of extreme power in the state administration. This power stemmed not just from fear, but also from the respect he commanded among the bureaucracy for his blunt approach and swift administrative action.

There was another reason for the 'Super CM' moniker. It was believed that if any files needed approval from Kumaraswamy, the only person who could persuade him was Revanna. Such was the respect -- some even call it fear -- that once big brother asked Kumaraswamy did not think twice.

Revanna the politician has grown from the grassroots. He worked as a district panchayat member in the family’s home district of Hassan and grew powerful after Deve Gowda became prime minister. He won the Holenarasipura assembly seat in 1994 and was made the housing minister in the J.H. Patel-led government.

Revanna has a strong hold over the milk unions in his district. He was also the president of Karnataka Milk Federation (KMF) for 13 years and ensured several reforms. KMF’s milk brand Nandini is known for its quality and competes with the top two Indian players Amul and Mother Dairy in Karnataka. As head of this cooperative movement, Revanna is said to have earned the respect and trust of the farmers.

D.K brothers:Born in Karnataka's Kanakapura in 1962, Doddalahalli Kempegowda Shivkumar, who is currently serving as the President of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee, joined politics when he was studying at RC College in Bengaluru. Later, he joined Youth Congress and was elected as General Secretary of Karnataka State Youth Congress between 1983-85. Shivakumar contested the 1989 elections as an independent candidate.

But just two years later, he became the youngest minister in the state at the age of 30, serving as a Minister of State under Chief Minister S Bangarappa from 1991 to 1992. Shivakumar is known for his dynamism and is a powerhouse of the Congress party. However, he was also involved in corruption charges including an illegal mining case, and alleged involvement in Shanthinagar housing society scam.

Despite the notoriety he has gained in over three decades of political career in the state and common knowledge that he has amassed enormous wealth, Shivakumar continues to hold sway in the Congress party and is viewed as critical to the revival of the party’s fortunes in the state. His younger brother D K Suresh is a Member of Parliament from Bangalore Rural.

Last month Shivakumar indicated that Suresh is likely to be fielded as the party's candidate from Ramanagara constituency in the Assembly polls, which is likely to be held by May. Speaking to reporters, Shivakumar said, "I have got a message that he (Suresh) should be fielded.'' Stating that it was not he who proposed the idea, he added, ''I haven't discussed it yet, even with Suresh and our workers. It will be a major decision. I'm still thinking about it." If Suresh, the lone Congress MP in the Lok Sabha from Karnataka, is fielded from Ramanagara, it will be a battle between two Vokkaliga bigwigs in their backyard, as JD(S) has fielded H D Kumaraswamy's son Nikhil Kumaraswamy as its candidate from the Assembly constituency.

While Ramanagara is the home district of Shivakumar and Suresh, for Kumaraswamy and family it is their "Karma Bhoomi". As someone from a very modest background who used to run a tent cinema and distribute milk in his native place, Shivakumar has now built a formidable business empire ranging from granite quarries to iron ore export to land parcel facilitation service for big builders.