Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s kind words for the veteran HD Deve Gowda on Tuesday, and Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s insinuations are not the only signs of the coming together of the JD(S) and the BJP. The selection of their candidates is evidence that Siddaramaiah’s chief opponents have coordinated with the aim of defeating Congress nominees in key constituencies.

There are already several combinations in the works depending on the outcome of the May 12 elections, but what is clear is that even if the Deve Gowda-led JD (S) matches its 2013 seat tally, it has a good chance of a shot at power, or, at least, to become a kingmaker with benefits.

The BJP has put up weak aspirants in constituencies where the JD(S) has a better chance of trouncing the Congress. The prime example is, of course, the Chamundeshwari constituency, where Siddaramaiah is the Congress candidate. Here, the BJP has fielded a virtual non-entity, Gopal Rao, whose last outing as a candidate was in the taluk panchayat polls. He polled about 250 votes and lost the elections.

Rao, a Brahmin, has been fielded in a constituency where the predominant castes are Vokkaligas followed by the Kurubas. The Brahmins have less than 5,000 votes, the Vokkaligas have about 70,000 and the Kuruba and Dalit votes number 40,000 votes each. The sitting legislator, GT Deve Gowda of the JD(S), is considered a heavyweight and has a better chance at crushing the Chief Minister on his home turf. BJP leader KS Eshwarappa, however, told BusinessLine that people vote for the BJP and not the candidate. “We are confident that Gopal Rao will win the elections there as the people will vote for the party,” he said, though it remains to be seen how many Kurubas and Vokkaligas would want to break ranks and vote for a Brahmin candidate.

It is the same situation in other constituencies in Mysuru, where the JD(S) has a far better chance of winning than the BJP, which has mostly fielded lightweight candidates. At least six other constituencies in the district — Hunsur, Krishnaraja, Krishnarajanagara, Narasinharaja, Periyapatna and T Narsipura — indicate a tacit understanding between the BJP and the JD(S). The narrative is the same in the districts of Hassan, Mandya, Ramanagaram, Chikballapur and parts of Tumkur districts.

While Deve Gowda has been threatening to disown his son and JD(S) State chief HD Kumaraswamy if he allies with the BJP, in a recent interview with a TV channel, he also admitted that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s last-minute dash across the State should not be taken lightly. He even said that opinion polls after the Modi rallies will give a far better picture of which party will eventually win.

Modi promptly returned the favour on Tuesday. Taking even political pundits by surprise, Modi criticised Congress President Rahul Gandhi for demeaning Deve Gowda. Calling Deve Gowda one of the “most respected, tallest political leaders in the country”, Modi accused Rahul Gandhi of insulting him.

Whether it was to attract whatever Vokkaliga votes that could come the BJP’s way, or create misgivings within the JD(S) ranks, it was seen as the smartest of Modi’s moves during his whistle-stop tour of the State.

Not many are willing to believe Deve Gowda’s claim that his party won’t have ties with the BJP. “These statements were made even during the run-up to the earlier elections by the JD(S). Having strange bedfellows is a common scenario among parties,” says Harish Ramaswamy, a professor of political science at Karnataka University.

He said the BJP will explore all available options to return to power in Karnataka and might be even willing to sacrifice its chief ministerial candidate BS Yeddyurappa to stitch up an alliance with the JD(S). Once the alliance is forged, the BJP might get an RSS man as its representative, Ramaswamy told BusinessLine .

BJP’s newly-elected Rajya Sabha MP, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, added to the prevailing confusion when he tweeted that Rahul Gandhi might even sideline Siddaramaiah and join hands with the JD(S) if it helps the Congress come to power.

However preposterous the canvas might look, the post-poll scenario will not be without its share of drama if the voters don’t pick a clear winner.

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