The 17th Lok Sabha elections will be crucial for the Congress to regain its foothold in the State after a below-par performance in the 2018 Assembly elections.

Karnataka, which sent the highest number of Congress MPs (9) to Parliament in 2014, is traditionally considered a safe haven for the grand old party, though the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has consistently consolidated its position here since the 1990s, making it its gateway to the south.

After the Congress’ poor showing in 2018 (80 Assembly seats), it stitched up a post-poll alliance with the Janata Dal (S) and formed a coalition government, for the second time in the past 15 years, to keep the saffron party out of power. This was seen as the first step in a larger, nationwide experiment.

Extending its alliance to the parliamentary elections, for the first time, the Congress and the JD(S) have decided to fight together in the 28 constituencies in the State. While the Congress will contest for 20 seats, the JD(S) will take the remaining eight.

Interestingly, these general elections could turn out decisive for the survival of the coalition government too. The Congress will be able to regain its grip on the government and the electorate if the party manages to win at least in 15 constituencies and a Congress-led government takes over at the Centre. In case the Congress and the BJP share equal honours in the State and the BJP falls short of majority but retains power with the support of allies, H.D. Kumaraswamy-led government may continue functioning smoothly in the State.

However, if the Congress doesn’t win many seats here and the BJP retains power at the Centre with absolute majority, the coalition government might face an acid test, as the BJP can then resume its efforts to poach legislators from the Congress-JD (S) combine.

At present, the State government is Janus-faced. A section of Congress leaders has been opposing alliance in some segments, which might prove advantageous to the BJP. Much will depend on how the coalition partners bridge the gulf and together face the BJP.