B.S. Yeddyurappa, president of the Bharatiya Janata Party State unit and the party’s chief ministeral candidate, seems all set to have a cakewalk in Shikaripur, his home turf from where he has won seven times since 1983.
Against him are Holebasappa Balegar of Janata Dal(S), a retired bureaucrat, and G.B. Malathesh of the Congress. The BJP enjoys a strong cadre base and robust organisational network in each gram panchayat here.
Lingayat factor
In the election campaign meetings, the BJP leaders are seeking votes by highlighting works such as widening of roads, construction of new bridges, school buildings and hostels when Mr. Yeddyurappa was the Chief Minister. As Lingayats form the major chunk of the population, the caste equation is in favour of Mr. Yeddyurappa.
Mr. Yeddyurappa, in election campaigns, has been repeatedly reminding voters that they are voting for a candidate whom the BJP has projected as its chief ministerial candidate. He also said that he declined requests to contest from North Karnataka because of the “emotional relationship” he had with the people of Shikaripur.
The JD(S) has made irrigation its poll plank here. Mr. Balegar told The Hindu that during his tenure as Deputy Chief Minister and Chief Minister, Mr. Yeddyurappa failed to take up projects to provide water for irrigation and drinking.
Refuting this allegation, B.Y. Raghavendra, Mr. Yeddyurappa’s son and present MLA of Shikaripur, said his father had put in great efforts for implementation of irrigation projects.
The Congress is optimistic of getting minority and Kuruba community votes that are in good numbers here.
However, Mr. Yeddyurappa seems more than confident in this territory.
