The Janata Dal (Secular) made much noise before the byelections, particularly taking up the issue of the “expensive watch” of the Chief Minister. But the election results are a big dampener for the party which lost deposit in all the three segments.
Though JD(S) State president H.D. Kumaraswamy claimed that he was against fielding candidates for the three constituencies and only “succumbed” to the pressure of party workers, the party had pinned some hope on Karemma G. Naik in Deodurg constituency. But, she too failed to retain deposit.
Y.A. Narayanaswamy’s victory in Hebbal is being viewed in political circles as the party patriarch H.D. Deve Gowda’s “contribution” to the victory of the Opposition BJP. It is said that the former Union Minister Jaffer Sharief had appealed to Mr. Gowda to withdraw the minority candidate fielded by the JD(S) so as to not divide votes against his grandson Abdul Rahman Sharief, who was contesting on Congress ticket. Interestingly, just before the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, there were rumours galore about the possibility of the senior Sharief joining the JD(S).
The JD(S), which made its presence felt in Hebbal by garnering 25,073 votes in the 2013 election, could secure just 3,666 votes in the byelection.
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H.D. Kumaraswamy, JD(S) State president: The outcome of bypolls is on the expected lines. But this will not have any impact on the Assembly elections in 2018. I was against fielding candidates for the bypolls, considering the money power of the ruling Congress and the Opposition BJP.
