By S.B. Devaraj

The Hunsur Assembly Constituency, once the ‘karmabhoomi’ of former Chief Minister late D. Devaraj Urs — who was popularly known as the champion of backward classes — holds great significance for several reasons.

In addition to producing one of the State’s most popular Chief Ministers, the Constituency is also noteworthy for several unique features. For instance, it witnessed the unanimous election of an MLA, which upset traditional caste arithmetic and reflected a broad-based appeal. Moreover, the Constituency has also recorded the highest number of by-polls held for an Assembly segment in the Mysuru district.

Of the 19 Assembly elections held so far, including four by-elections for the Hunsur segment, the Congress party has emerged victorious 12 times. The Janata Dal (Secular) has won three times, while the Janata Party and BJP have each won twice.

With elections scheduled for May 10, Hunsur is once again in the political spotlight. Analysts and pundits are busy making their predictions about which candidate will ultimately        emerge victorious.

It’s worth noting that late D. Devaraj Urs, who hailed from Kallahalli in Hunsur taluk, set a new precedent with some of his bold decisions in State politics. Over the course of three decades, the people of Hunsur consistently supported Urs, endorsing his prominent decisions and reformative measures, which are still considered milestones in the State’s history.

Unanimously elected

In the first Legislative Assembly elections held in 1952, D. Devaraja Urs was elected on a Congress ticket from the Hunsur Constituency, defeating independent candidate B.L. Marigowda. In the subsequent elections held in 1957, Hunsur became a dual-member Constituency and Urs, along with N. Rachaiah of Congress, emerged victorious.

When the Constituency reverted to a single-member segment in 1962, Urs was elected unanimously, securing his third consecutive victory. He was re-elected in 1967 after defeating independent candidate Thimmappa.

In 1972, Devaraj Urs, who had been touring the State, chose to field D. Kariappa Gowda as the Congress candidate for Hunsur, rather than contesting himself. Kariappa Gowda emerged victorious, defeating Samstha Congress (Congress (O)) nominee H. Hombegowda.

Meanwhile, Devaraj Urs became the Chief Minister and was re-elected to the Assembly in a by-election from Hunsur (as the sitting MLA Kariappa Gowda was elected to the Legislative Council), defeating his nearest rival, independent candidate Rangaswamy.

Identifying with Congress (I) (Indira Congress, a splinter group of the Indian National Congress that owed allegiance to then-Prime Minister Indira Gandhi), Devaraja Urs won the election against Dr. H.L. Thimmegowda of the Janata Party in 1978, securing his sixth consecutive term and adorning the CM’s chair for a second consecutive term.

Death of Devaraj Urs

However, Devaraj Urs, who had been a six-time MLA of Hunsur and a two-time CM of the State, passed away in 1982, leaving a void in the State politics.

In the changed circumstances — Urs had formed his own regional outfit, Karnataka Krantiranga, a few months before his death, after severing his ties with the Indira Congress and Congress (O) following a falling out with Indira Gandhi) — Urs’ daughter, D. Chandraprabha Urs, contested the 1983 Hunsur election as the Janata Party candidate and emerged victorious, defeating Congress candidate H.N. Premkumar.

In the 1985 elections, Chandraprabha Urs contested on a Congress ticket but failed to secure a victory against H.L. Thimmegowda of the Janata Party. However, she was re-elected in the 1989 election, defeating D. Kariappa Gowda of Janata Dal.

Change in political scenario

Following a change in the political scenario, Chandraprabha Urs went on to win the Lok Sabha elections from the erstwhile Mysore (now Mysuru- Kodagu) Parliamentary Constituency in 1991. This led to a by-election in Hunsur.

Lady luck smiled on S. Chikkamadu, who had till then lost elections twice, was elected as Congress MLA in the by-election defeating BJP candidate C.H. Vijayashankar. However, in the subsequent elections held in 1994, Vijayashankar avenged his defeat, by winning against Kodi V. Papanna of Janata Dal.

Hunsur Assembly Constituency had to witness a by-poll yet again for the third time, as Vijayashankar was elected to Lok Sabha from Mysore seat in the year 1998. Janata Dal candidate G.T. Devegowda was elected defeating rebel candidate Kodi V. Papanna. He (Kodi Papanna) contested as the BJP candidate in the next elections held in 1999 and defeated G.T. Devegowda. Devegowda made a comeback by defeating Congress candidate S. Chikkamadu in the 2004 elections.

New entrant

In the 2008 elections, the Hunsur Constituency elected a new MLA H.P. Manjunath, who narrowly won amid stiff competition from two former MLAs, S. Chikkamadu of the JD(S) and G.T. Devegowda of the BJP.

Manjunath managed to retain his seat in the 2013 elections, with prominent rivals including Kumaraswamy of the JD(S) and Manjunath Urs of the Karnataka Janata Paksha (KJP). However, he failed to score a hat-trick as he lost to A.H. Vishwanath of the JD(S) in the 2018 election.

Following a significant development where the JD(S)-Congress Coalition Government fell due to the support withdrawn by 17 MLAs, including Vishwanath, the BJP came to power and Hunsur went to a by-election again. This time, H.P. Manjunath was lucky as he won from the Congress against Vishwanath, who contested from the BJP.

Lucky outsiders

As previously mentioned, Hunsur Constituency has seen the rise of politicians who originally hail from outside the region, such as C.H. Vijayashankar, G.T. Devegowda, and A.H. Vishwanath.

Vijayashankar, who is originally from Byadgi, established his political career in Hunsur after coming to his sister’s house in the region. He has served as an MLA (1994), MP, MLC and also held the position of Forest Minister. Similarly, G.T. Devegowda, who hails from Gungral Chatra in Yelwal hobli in Mysuru taluk, won the 1998 by-election and the 2004 general election from Hunsur. A.H. Vishwanath, from the neighbouring K.R. Nagar taluk, also emerged victorious in Hunsur by winning the 2018 election.

Not many from Urs family

Except for Chandraprabha Urs, the daughter of D. Devaraj Urs, no other members of the family have been successful in elections in Hunsur. Bharati Urs, another daughter of Devaraj Urs, contested as a BJP-Lokshakti candidate in the 1998 by-elec

tions but was unsuccessful.

Similarly, Manjunath Urs, son of Chandraprabha Urs, contested as a candidate for KJP in 2013 but did not win. H.N. Premkumar, the father of the current MLA H.P. Manjunath and a staunch Congressman, contested twice but was unable to win.

All eyes on Hunsur

The 2023 Assembly elections have garnered significant attention and the Hunsur Constituency is no exception. The incumbent Congress MLA, H.P. Manjunath, is seeking re-election, with the party already announcing his ticket. The JD(S) candidate is G.D. Harish Gowda, the MCDCC Bank President and son of Chamundeshwari MLA G.T. Devegowda, who had previously represented Hunsur twice. Harish Gowda has developed a rapport with constituents by touring the segment along with his father, and he is also involved in various activities through the Co-operative sector.

In such a situation, Hunsur will witness a straight fight between the two candidates, but the curiosity remains as the BJP is yet to announce its candidate. The Constituency comprises influential numbers of Vokkaliga, Lingayat and Kuruba voters, besides significant numbers of Nayaka and other community votes. However, one cannot fully rely on the results based on caste lines here.

VOTER DATA

Male                                                    :                       1,20,290

Female                                                :                       1,20,474

Others                                                 :                       13

Total                                                    :                       2,40,777

Polling booths                                      :                       273

Voting percentage in 2018                 :                       83.04

Total votes                                          :                       2,23,209

Total votes polled                               :                       1,85,342

HUNSUR MLAs and A CM AMONG THEM

Year                                                Winners                                                    Party

1952                                                 D. Devaraj Urs                                               Congress

1957 (Dual- member seat)               D. Devaraj Urs and N. Rachaiah                    Congress

1962 (unanimous)                            D. Devaraj Urs                                               Congress

1967                                                 D. Devaraj Urs                                              Congress

1972                                                 D. Kariappa Gowda                                      Congress

1972 (by-poll)                                   D. Devaraj Urs                                              Congress

1978                                                 D. Devaraj Urs                                              Congress

1983                                                 D. Chandraprabha Urs                                 Janata Party

1985                                                 Dr. H.L. Thimmegowda                                Janata Party

1989                                                 D. Chandraprabha Urs                                 Congress

1991 (by-poll)                                   S. Chikkamadu                                             Congress

1994                                                 C.H. Vijayashankar                                       BJP

1998 (by-poll)                                   G.T. Devegowda                                           JD(S)

1999                                                 Kodi V. Papanna                                           BJP

2004                                                 G.T. Devegowda                                           JD(S)

2008                                                 H.P. Manjunath                                            Congress

2013                                                 H.P. Manjunath                                            Congress

2018                                                 A.H. Vishwanath                                           JD(S)

2019 (by-poll)                                   H.P. Manjunath                                            Congress