NDA, Congress locked in close fight

Bengaluru: The first phase of Lok Sabha (LS) elections for 14 Constituencies in the State will be held on Apr. 26 and Congress & National Democratic Alliance (NDA) led by BJP, which has a truck with Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S), are locked in a close fight.

While Congress has pitted its candidates in all the 14 seats, BJP has fielded its nominees in 11 seats and its ally JD(S) in three seats. The last date for withdrawal of nominations was Apr. 8 and the candidates of all the three prominent parties in the State are in the fray. It includes following Constituencies: Mysuru-Kodagu, Chamarajanagar, Mandya, Hassan, Udupi-Chikkamagalur, Dakshina Kannada, Chitradurga, Tumakuru, Chikkaballapur, Kolar, Bengaluru Rural, Central, North and South.

Barring the candidates of 3 prominent parties in the State, no other candidates in the fray look to pose a fight, reducing it to a straight fight between Congress and NDA candidates. 

The candidates have already hit the campaign trail with the leaders accompanying them in the road shows and meetings to woo the electorates. Except for the recent mega road show of Union Home Minister Amit Shah in favour of BJP candidate Dr. C.N. Manjunath in Bengaluru Rural, no other national leaders have hit the hustings in the State.

The prominent candidates in 14 LS Constituencies that goes into voting in the first phase includes titular king of erstwhile Mysore Royal Family Yaduveer Wadiyar of BJP in Mysuru-Kodagu seat, JD(S) candidate and former CM H.D. Kumaraswamy in Mandya and D.K. Suresh, brother of Dy.CM D.K. Shivakumar, who is seeking re-election from Bengaluru Rural Constituency.

Among those 14 Constituencies, 11 seats are reserved for General Category and three are Scheduled Caste (SC) Reserved seats — Chamarajanagar, Kolar and Chitradurga.

The prestige of many is at stake including that of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah with Varuna Assembly Constituency represented by him in the Legislative Assembly falling under Chamarajanagar LS segment, where Sunil Bose, son of Social Welfare Minister Dr. H.C. Mahadevappa, is trying his luck in his maiden contest as a Congress candidate.

Similarly, most of the influential Ministers in the Cabinet of CM Siddaramaiah, are also testing their mettle with their kith and kin in the electoral arena this time.