Karnataka is crucial for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Congress and the regional player Janata Dal (secular).
For the BJP, the battle in the state matters as it is the only state in the South where it has gained a dominant presence after winning 25 of the 28 seats in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. It is also of crucial for the BJP's 'Mission South' as the party has failed to make inroads in southern states other than Karnataka and Telangana.
Also read: Prajwal Revanna sexual assault case: Hassan MP's arrest at landing looms after lookout notice is issued
Karnataka is also crucial for a growing Congress, especially after the grand old party registered a victory by capturing 135 of the 224 seats in the state assembly elections last year.
The 14 seats in north Karnataka voting on May 7 include Chikkodi, Belgaum, Bagalkot, Bijapur, Gulbarga, Raichur, Bidar, Koppal, Bellary, Haveri, Dharwad, Uttara Kannada, Davangere and Shimoga
Struggle for survival for JD(S)
And for the Janata Dal(S), the biggest 'loser' in the 2023 state polls, the stakes remain even higher given the party's 'existential' crisis. The stakes are high for the BJP ally, given its dismal performance in last year's assembly elections. JD(S) won only 19 seats. Perhaps the party has allied with the BJP to gain the lost ground in the state.
The three Lok Sabha seats contested by the JD(S) as part of its alliance went to polls in phase 3 on April 26. This included the Hassan seat, where JD(S) leader Prajwal Revanna faced sexual assault allegations. , won in 2019. In fact, Hassan was the only Lok Sabha seat that the JD(S) won in the 2019 general elections. However, the JD(S) had an alliance with the Congress Party in 2019.
“The next round of elections will be in North Karnataka, where the JD(S) is not getting much support. So I think it will have minimal visibility in that sense. Unless the SIT investigation comes up with significant concrete evidence, I think the BJP can dismiss it as changed. If it had been blown up as it is now, just before the elections (April 26), it would have had a different impact in South Karnataka,” political analyst Sandeep Shastri told News18.
On election day on April 16, former Prime Minister and JD(S) chief HD Deve Gowda expressed confidence that the BJP-JDS alliance would secure victory in all the 14 seats of the state contested in the first phase that day voted.
Prajwal Revanna 'sexual abuse' impact
Alliance partners BJP and the JD(S) found themselves in a position just days before the May 7 elections following the sexual abuse episode involving Prajwal Revanna, who is also the grandson of former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda.
While JD(S) does not have a significant presence in the 14 seats in north Karnataka that go to polls on May 7, the scandal is expected to impact the prospects of the BJP-JD(S) alliance due to its impact it on the image of the party. . However, the JD(S) and the BJP have distanced themselves from Prajwal. The party has suspended him and the BJP says they will not support him either.
On May 1, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said his party would not support those committing atrocities against women. Shah, speaking for the first time after the scandal, addressed Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM DK Shivakumar and asked why no action was taken against Prajwal before the elections were over in the Vokkaliga belt, in the first phase.
Shah was referring to 14 seats in South Karnataka that went to polls on April 26. These 14 seats include areas in Vokkaliga-dominated Old Mysore and the coastal seats of the state.
The Lingayat community will be a dominant caste in the 14-seat vote on May 7. The Lingayats, Karnataka's largest community, constitute nearly 17 percent of the state's 5.3-crore electorate. Vokkaligas, another politically important group, represent about 12 percent of voters.
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Published: May 2, 2024 2:17 PM IST