Karnataka Elections: A Modi-Vated BJP, Cautious Congress and Hopeful JDS Wait for Voting Day

As the warm May sun sets over the Arabian Sea on Monday evening, the high-voltage Karnataka assembly election campaign, the likes of which the state has never seen, comes to an end.

The ruling BJP, which initially seemed directionless, got a boost from Modi and the prime minister led the campaign to every nook and corner of the vast state. The opposition Congress is confident of victory, but it is cautious about its approach. The third player JDS is expecting a hung assembly which could help the Gowda family form a coalition government.

When karnataka election 2023 Announced on March 29, the ruling BJP faced several challenges to run the campaign. The entry of PM Modi changed this. He led a high-voltage campaign across the state, urging people to vote for what the BJP calls a “double-engine”. Government, The arrival of Modi has boosted the popularity of the BJP and the state leaders feel that the result will be in their favour. Union Home Minister Amit Shah also extensively campaigned and strategised for the party.

Modi also held a 36-km roadshow in the state capital Bengaluru, where the Congress is equally dominant.

The grand old party made its campaign local, rarely speaking about national issues. It campaigned like a regional party under the leadership of Siddaramaiah, DK Shivakumar and MB Patil. congress president Mallikarjun Khargewho is from Karnataka also led a powerful campaign across the state.

former congress president Sonia Gandhi Addressed only one election meeting in Hubli, which was his first after the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. his children and congress leaders Rahul Gandhi And Priyanka Gandhi was the chief campaigner of the party and her public meetings used to attract good crowds.

Kharge’s “poisonous serpent” remark against Modi jolted the Congress, but the party managed to ride out the storm. Whether the proposed ban on Bajrang Dal affects voting patterns remains to be seen, but the BJP has made it a major election issue.

Congress’s star campaigner Siddaramaiah and if the party wins, a lot of credit will go to him. The party is banking on a split in the Lingayat vote, which has been the backbone of the BJP since 2004, and is also pinning its hopes on its five guarantees.

BJP has also announced many gifts and many things are common in the manifestos of both the parties.

The JDS, which has announced dozens of welfare schemes that have been termed as freebies by rivals, is fighting for its survival. With party supremo HD Deve Gowda being old and unwell, his son and former chief minister HD Kumaraswamy led a six-month-long campaign across the state.

Several pre-poll surveys have predicted a hung assembly. Some have predicted a Congress victory while some claim that the BJP will cross 100 seats.

In this battle of do or die, the Congress has given everything. The reclusive man behind the scenes, Sunil Kanungolu, the party’s chief election strategist, led the election campaign from the party’s war room. If Congress comes to Vidhana Soudha, Kanungolu will get a lot of credit along with others.

A defeat would be a death blow for the Congress as the entire party had come together to fight this election. And one loss can even lead to the disintegration of the state unit.

If the BJP loses this election, it may have some impact on the Lok Sabha elections 2024, but the state unit will live to fight another day. The Congress does not have that luxury.

A clear majority for the Congress or the BJP would be the end of the JDS story and some of its MLAs might even switch sides keeping their political future in mind.

Karnataka is now hoping for the arrival of India’s lifeline southwest monsoon in the first week of June with the arrival of a stable government in the state.

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