New Delhi:
Jagadish Shettar could have become the Chief Minister of Karnataka in August 2011 when BS Yeddyurappa was forced to resign over corruption charges. But Sadananda Gowda beat him to the hot seat, backed by Mr Yeddyurappa. Ironically, in 2012 it is Mr Yeddyurappa who has pushed to have Mr Shettar, a fellow Lingayat, appointed Chief Minister.
Clearly, "Jagadish Shettar" is the correct answer to the question - "so who really won in the BJP's elaborate rebellion drama?" Mr Yeddyurappa fell out with his protege and successor Sadananda Gowda and Mr Shettar was available - the right man at the right time and, crucially, from the right community. The 57-year-old lawyer's biggest advantage is that he belongs to the powerful Lingayat community. His biggest disadvantage, that he will be seen as a BS Yeddyurappa rubber stamp on policy decisions at a time that the latter faces several corruption allegations and a CBI investigation in the illegal mining scam.
Born on December 17, 1955 in Kerur village in north Karnataka's Bagalkot district, Mr Shettar's earliest political influences were his father, Shivappa Shivamurthappa Shettar and his uncle Sadashiv Shettar - both leaders of the Jan Sangh. His father SS Shettar was elected to the Hubli-Dharwad City Corporation five times in a row. He also served as Mayor for one term. Jagadish's uncle Sadashiv Shettar was MLA from the Hubli constituency in the year 1967 - the first to be elected on a Jan Sangh ticket to the Karnataka Assembly.
After graduating with commerce from the JG College in Hubli, Jagadish Shettar studied law and began practising as a lawyer at the Hubli Bar. He married Shilpa in 1984 and the couple have two sons - Prashant and Sankalp.
Mr Shettar began his public life as an active member of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (BJP's student wing) and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). In 1994, he was elected as a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for the first time, from the Hubli Rural constituency with a margin of 16,000 votes. Since then, there was no looking back. He has been elected to the Assembly four consecutive times, increasing the margin of victory with every election. He won the 2008 elections with a margin of 26,000 votes.
In 1999, when Union External Affairs Minister SM Krishna was the Chief Minister of the state, Mr Shettar was the Leader of Opposition in the Assembly. In 2005, he was elected the state president of the BJP in Karnataka. A year later, he was promoted to the cabinet as Revenue Minister. Two years later, he was elected as the Speaker of Karnataka Vidhan Soudha, the first BJP leader to hold the post in a southern state. Since 2009, he served as the Minister for Rural Development and Panchayat Raj.
At a time when the state is reeling under severe drought, the worst affected North Karnataka region would hope that a Chief Minister from that very area - who has held the Rural Development portfolio - could make some tangible difference.