For the first time after a gap of 13 years, former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Minister for Higher Education G.T. Deve Gowda will campaign jointly in Chamundeshwari Assembly constituency to seek votes for Congress candidate C.H. Vijayshankar, who is being backed by the Janata Dal (Secular), in the Mysuru Lok Sabha constituency.

Mr. Siddaramaiah and Mr. Gowda, who had fallen apart after the former quit the JD (S) and joined the Congress in 2006, will campaign together in Jayapura, Yelwal, Siddalingapura, and Kadakola on April 14.

The joint campaign of Mr. Siddaramaiah and Mr. Gowda in Chamundeshwari Assembly constituency comes barely a year after the two fought against each other in the Assembly elections, which saw Mr. Siddaramaiah suffering a humiliating defeat.

Announcing the schedule of the joint campaign, Mr. Gowda said he had never stayed away from programmes attended by Mr. Siddaramaiah as Chief Minister in Chamundeshwari constituency even when the two were political adversaries.

During his days with undivided Janata Parivar and later with JD(S), Mr. Gowda was one of Mr. Siddaramaiah’s key aides in Chamundeshwari Assembly constituency.

The rivalry between Mr. Siddaramaiah, a Kuruba, and Mr. Gowda, a Vokkaliga, had also divided the people along caste lines in the constituency. The joint campaign by Mr. Siddaramaiah and Mr. Gowda is expected to give a shot in the arm to the prospects of Mr. Vijayshankar, who is pitted against BJP’s Pratap Simha, a Vokkaliga.

The campaign to draw the votes of JD (S) supporters in Mysuru, particularly Vokkaligas, who are disgruntled over the alliance with the Congress, began on Friday with party supremo H.D. Deve Gowda sharing the dais with Mr. Siddaramaiah at a public function and backing Mr. Vijayshankar’s candidature.

The joint campaign by Mr. Gowda and Mr. Siddaramaiah in Mysuru on Friday was part of a series programmes addressed by the two leaders in different parts of the State, including Bengaluru North, Chickballapur, Tumakuru, Hassan, and Mandya.

Mysuru Lok Sabha constituency was among the parts of the Old Mysore region, where the two coalition partners, who had been traditional political rivals, had faced serious coordination issues. However, leaders of the two parties made efforts to put up a united front by addressing a joint press conference in the city last Sunday and launching a joint campaign in Hunsur on Monday.