A battle between two outsiders in Chitradurga

CHITRADURGA: Early in March as the political heat picked up in Mandya, voters asked CM HD Kumaraswamy about his son Nikhil’s relationship with Mandya as it became clear that he would contest from the Vokkaliga heartland.

But in parched Chitradurga, the ‘outsider’ tag is not an issue. In fact, Congress candidate BN Chandrappa, who is seeking re-election, makes no bones about not being a native. Chandrappa started his political career in Chikkamagaluru. Even BJP, which is hoping to win the segment for the first time, has chosen former minister A Narayanaswamy, who is from Anekal, Bengaluru urban district.

Chitradurga, a reserved constituency, has a history of electing candidates who are rank outsiders. Case in point: the recent re-election of Raghu Achar from Mysuru as the MLC.

A Congress bastion —the party has won 12 of the 16 LS polls— it is now witnessing a spirited challenge from BJP which has managed to win five of the eight assembly segments in 2018 state elections.

Having shifted its Ballari strongman B Sreeramulu, a prominent ST leader, to Chitradurga, BJP is looking to consolidate its position. However, the one-lakh strong Bhovi community is unhappy with BJP as it failed to keep the promise of picking a candidate from the community. “BJP leaders had assured us that they would pick an elected representative from the community. But they have failed to do so. As a mark of our protest, we are going to pick NOTA this time,” says Immadi Siddarameswara seer of Bhovi Gurupeeta.

The two main contenders—Chandrappa and Narayanaswamy—both belong to SC (Left sect) and they are a majority among the SCs in the region. There are 3 lakh Dalit voters and 3 lakh STs, followed by 2.5 lakh Lingayats. There are 1.3 lakh Muslim voters, while Vokkaligas and Kurubas each have 1.2 lakh votes. There are three lakh OBC voters, including Yadavas and Golla in the constituency.

“There is no Modi wave in Chitradurga but there is a Siddaramaiah wave,” says Chandrappa, 64. Siddaramaiah was part of the road show when Chandrappa filed his nomination. “I am known for my work here. There is also complete co-ordination with JD(S) and Congress here,” he says. Chandrappa’s assertion that pact with JD(S) will increase his vote share stems from the votes polled during the 2018 assembly polls. Among the eight assembly segments in Chitradurga and Tumakuru districts which are part of the Chitradurga segment, JD(S) won in one (Sira) while its candidates finished second against BJP in two segments—Challakere and Chitradurga.

In the 2014 LS polls, Congress bagged 42.99% of the votes, BJP got 33.67% and JD(S) 18.58%.

However BJP candidate Narayanaswamy, 54, asserted that the Modi wave and anti-incumbency will help him garner votes, along with support from Sreeramulu. But there is growing complaint that Sreeramulu is not accessible. His one-time associate Thippeswamy, a former MLA from Molkalmuru, has now joined the Congress.