Karnataka: Congress tries new caste matrix to win back old constituency

DAVANAGERE

: It was once a Congress bastion, but it had lost the plot in recent times. Now, it has picked a Kuruba to take on the BJP’s Lingayat candidate. Whether the new caste matrix is enough to reclaim lost ground remains to be seen.


In the past five

Lok Sabha

polls, Congress fielded a Lingayat but failed to break the saffron party’s stranglehold over the district, a bustling c om me rcial hub and known for political rallies. Over 11 LS polls, Congress has won six times and BJP five.

Congress has fielded Davanagere District Congress Committee HB Manjappa, which all happened as octogenarian MLA

Shamanur

Shivashankarappa turned down the ticket on health grounds. Party sources said Shivashankarappa suggested the ticket be given to his protege Manjappa, a 51-year-old former zilla panchayat president. A senior Congress leader said they initially asked former CM Siddaramaiah to contest as he (a Kuruba too) could reclaim the segment from BJP’s GM Siddeshwar, a former Union minister. But he declined.

Senior Congress MLC Mohan Kondaji, who is from Davanagere, said: “Shivashankarappa was our best bet.” He referred to the hat-trick of Channaiah Odeyar (Congress), a prominent Kuruba leader in the region. “The alliance with JD(S) will help us,” he said.

Kurubas form 15% of the total 16.32 lakh electorate. There are 2.3 lakh Muslims on whom the party banks on besides the 3 lakh Scheduled Castes and 1.65 lakh Scheduled Tribes voters. Of 4 lakh Lingayat voters, 50% are from the Sadar sub-sect to which the BJP candidate belongs.

A BJP poll manager said, “In 2014, we secured around 70% of the Lingayat vote. If Shivashankarappa had been the candidate, there could have been a 5% shift to Congress.”

Siddeshwar, a prominent arecanut businessman from Bheemasamudra in adjoining Chitradurga district, hopes the Modi wave will be enough to see him through. After the death of his father G Mallikarjunappa, an RSS activist, the party fielded Siddeshwar.

Davangere is considered the Mandya of Central Karnataka but this time, it’s still quiet. Though the Centre selected it for the Smart City project, lack of infrastructure, mainly drinking water, is a major issue. The city is an education hub and a large number of first-time voters could play a major role.