Should Delhi come to hassan before hassan goes to Delhi?

BENGALURU: The clock is ticking away. There’s less than 48 hours left before electioneering for 14 Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka, which go to polls in the second phase, comes to an end. The last-minute scramble for votes has both Congress-JDS and the BJP busy with strategic touches to their desperate campaigning — with a twist. 

Senior BJP leader R Ashoka, a Vokkaliga, told TNIE that they are still trying very hard to schedule a rally by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the JD(S) stronghold Hassan where the party candidate, A Manju, is locked in a straight fight with JD(S)’s Prajwal Revanna. The BJP feels getting Modi to Hassan could swing the mood in their favour. That shows the extent to which they bank on his star power. 

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The contrast with the coalition side is sharp. Listen only to Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee Dinesh Gundu Rao, who said, “We do not want to disturb the election momentum by getting in big leaders like Rahul Gandhi here in the next 48 hours. I am quite confident our candidates will do well in all seats.’’
At the same time, Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy has put off most of his engagements and will stay in Mandya till April 18. 

Kumaraswamy’s son Nikhil Kumar is taking on Independent candidate Sumalatha Ambareesh, wife of former Congress minister and the late superstar M H Ambareesh.
Both sides have reportedly marked entire constituencies down to the last voter and elaborate lists are prepared to map who is on whose side. But senior leaders are holding their cards close to their chest on what their last-mile gameplan will be.