The Shiggaon seat has been won by the chief minister thrice since 2008 when he joined the BJP after quitting the JDS. The Congress had fielded former MLA Khadri Syed Azampeer Syed Kader Basha, who had lost to Bommai thrice in the last three assembly elections by a margin of around 10,000 votes. Party sources say the Congress decided to field a new face and a strong Muslim leader against Bommai to raise the issue of Muslim rights and freedoms.
Shiggaon is an assembly seat with around 2.14 lakh voters, of which both Lingayats and Muslims account for around 75,000 voters each. Another 20,000 voters belong to the Kuruba community, 20,000 to the Scheduled Caste category, and about 17,000 to the Scheduled Tribe category.
Until the last election in 2018, Bommai had the support of the Muslim community apart from Lingayat votes in the community to which he belongs. However, the BJP has raised its voice against the recent decision of the Bommai government to remove the four per cent reservation allotted to Muslims to meet the demands for hijab, halal and higher reservation by Lingayats and Vokkaligas, which could have significant implications. On the voting pattern on the seat.
According to political analyst SA Hemant, Savanur is a formidable challenger. “This time, Muslims are going to vote for Congress in a big way and will not be swayed by SDPI as Muslims have realized that SDPI cuts into Congress votes to help BJP. Muslims will vote for that party which can come to power by defeating BJP.
The analyst believes that three key issues will make Muslims vote for the Congress. “First, scrapping the four per cent Muslim reservation and giving it to two major communities belonging to Hindus – Lingayats and Vokkaligas. Second, the ban on cow slaughter, which according to Muslims, is a direct attack on their eating habits as well as their employment. Third is the hijab issue which has kept thousands of girls out of school, especially in coastal Karnataka. Though these three issues have brought Muslims together, however, it has not united Hindus,” Hemant said.
The Grand Old Party is hoping to cash in on the growing discontent among Muslims against the BJP. A section of the Panchamali Lingayats, who are upset that their demand for a separate religious status has not been met by the current dispensation, may also switch sides to the Congress.
Several Congress leaders from north Karnataka, whom News18 spoke to, said that Savanur is a strong contender against Bommai as he has considerable influence in the Hubli-Dharwad region. He is twice elected President of Anjuman-e-Islam in Hubli and has good support within the community.
Savanur was one of the frontrunners for the Hubli-Dharwad Central seat for the Congress. However, as soon as the drama of Shettar’s defection to the Congress came to the fore, he was allotted the Hubli seat. He was then to be accommodated by giving him a ticket to contest against Bommai from Shiggaon.
“He has a tough job to do and if he manages to defeat Bommai, he will be known as the giant slayer. But the fight will be tough as the chief minister has a strong hold too.”
The Congress was persuading former minister Vinay Kulkarni, a Panchamasali Lingayat leader, to contest from Shiggaon, but he was more interested in contesting from the Dharwad constituency.
The Congress wanted to divert the Panchamasali votes away from the BJP and attract them to the Congress, thereby reducing Bommai’s chances. Congress also had a back-up plan. He assured Kulkarni that even if he lost against Bommai, he would be made an MLC and a minister.
But now Kulkarni is in trouble. People’s representatives in Bengaluru have been barred by a special court from entering and campaigning in their respective constituencies. He is an accused in the murder case of BJP District Panchayat member Yogesh Gowda.
The Congress leader had filed a petition for permission to enter the district, but the judge on Tuesday refused it as the court noted that even the Supreme Court had ordered an order prohibiting him from entering Dharwad. Had done it.
In the Hubli-Dharwad Central seat, former Karnataka CM Shettar managed to get the ticket from the Congress, which was rejected by the BJP. Shettar was extremely upset and disgruntled after the BJP asked him to step aside and not contest from the Hubli-Dharwad seat. A distressed man, he joined the Congress to show the BJP that he was not one to give up.
The BJP has fielded Mahesh Tenginakayi from the seat which Shettar has won six times since 1994. Tenginakayi holds the rank of general secretary in the state unit and is known to be a close aide of Shettar.
Holding a media briefing in Hubli, Shettar alleged that another senior BJP leader SA Ramadoss was also sidelined and denied ticket because the candidates who were given (Hubli-Dharwad Central) and Krishnaraja K had close relations with BJP’s National General Secretary (Organisation) B.L. Satisfaction. He further said that those who were loyal to Santosh were promoted by sacrificing many senior leaders.
Tenginkayi, however, rubbished Shettar’s allegations. “Jagadish Shettar is my mentor and I have worked with him in six elections and learned from him for the last 30 years. This has not become a fight between the guru and the ‘shishya’ and I hope my guru blesses me.
The Congress’s fourth list, which included seven more candidates for the 224-member strong Karnataka Assembly, gave the Chikkamagaluru ticket to HD Thamayya, once a BJP veteran and a close aide of national general secretary CT Ravi.
Thamayya had sought a BJP ticket for the same seat from which his close friend Ravi had been elected four times since 2004. Thamayya left BJP after not getting ticket and now Congress has fielded him from this seat against Ravi.
Durgappa S Hulageri will contest on Congress ticket from Lingasugur constituency, Deepak Chinchore from Hubli-Dharwad West Assembly seat, Nandgavi Srinivas from Harihar and MA Gopalaswamy from Shravanabelagola.
read all latest politics news Here