BJP sits pretty but Congress struggles for legislative and parliamentary bypolls in Karnataka

BENGALURU: Dates for bypolls to Maski and Basavakalyan assembly seats and Belagavi Lok Sabha constituency are yet to be announced, but the BJP has hit the ground running, with booth-level preparations. The party is yet to finalise names of candidates.

The Congress, on the other hand, under intense pressure to pull off a win, is struggling to identify "winnable" candidates. Soon after winning Rajarajeshwari Nagar and Sira, BJP leaders turned their focus on Maski, Basavakalyan and Belagavi. BY Vijayendra, a state vice-president, has already visited Basavakalyan.

The State government recently called tenders to finalise the design for construction of Anubhava Mantapa in Basavakalyan, the land of 12th century spiritual leader Basavanna. With a large Lingayat population in Basavakalyan, Maski and even Belagavi, this move is, no doubt, well-timed. State BJP Secretary Ravikumar said groundwork has begun in all three constituencies.

A team of 30 members has been formed, besides WhatsApp groups at the booth level, which will take instructions from the top to the last person in the village. It is an organised campaign, similar to the one launched in Sira. On the other hand, the Congress is struggling to finalise candidates, except in Maski, where candidates have swapped parties.

Basanagouda Turvihal, who contested on a BJP ticket against Prathapgouda Patil in 2018 and lost, joined the Congress, while Patil moved to the BJP. The rivals will faceoff again, with the memory of Turvihal’s 213-vote loss still fresh in the public mind. In Basavakalyan, there are a few contenders, including former Chief Minister Dharam Singh’s son Vijay Singh.

Congress leaders are keen to give the ticket to a family member of Narayana Rao, whose death due to Covid necessitated the byelection. “It’s not about giving the ticket to any candidate, we need a winnable candidate. We have to win this bypoll, especially after the bad show RR Nagar and Sira,” said a senior leader on condition of anonymity.

KPCC Working President Saleem Ahmed said two committees, headed by Eshwar Khandre and Satish Jarkiholi, will list out candidates for Basavakalyan and Belagavi and submit their recommendations to KPCC President DK Shivakumar, and the names will be finalised by the high command.