Image used for representational purpose only. (File photo)
BENGALURU: In a surprise move, businessman Kadaluru Uday Gowda of Maddur taluk in Mandya district, joined the Congress. It was alleged that Uday had played a key role in bringing down the Congress-JDS alliance government led by former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy, and helping former chief minister B S Yediyurappa form the BJP government in 2019.
KPCC president D K Shivakumar told reporters that the Congress, which had lost Maddur, would win it back by defeating JDS MLA D C Thammanna, as Uday’s inclusion would strengthen the party. “Uday has been working in this constituency for some time, but joined the Congress unconditionally to defeat the JDS,” Shivakumar said, adding that the constituency, represented by the likes of former chief minister SM Krishna, is significant for the Congress party.
Asked about Uday’s alleged involvement in ‘Operation Lotus’, in which 17 Congress and JDS MLAs resigned to help Yediyurappa form the government, Shivakumar defended him, saying, “He did whatever he did, as he was in the opposition. Has not A Manju switched from the Congress to JDS”?
Uday, a billionaire, ran businesses in India and abroad, especially in Sri Lanka. He is from a village called Kadaluru, near Maddur, and grew from scratch into a big businessman, sources said.
A close associate of former minister C P Yogishwar, he was also in touch with BY Vijayendra, BJP vice-president. The Class X pass Uday is likely to get the Congress ticket from Maddur against JDS MLA D C Thammanna, a close relative of former PM H D Deve Gowda.
“Given his strong financial background, he is a prize catch for the Congress. Local leaders from Mandya, including Ramakrishna, MLCs Dinesh Gooligowda and Madhu Madegowda, have also played their own role in getting him into the Congress,” a source told TNIE. He also has the approval of Krishna’s nephew Gurucharan.
Uday had already reached out to every household in Maddur with freebies and gifts, including saris, a resident told The New Indian Express. “We were out of station, and returned to find the gifts placed on the threshold,” he remarked. Interestingly, he is also on good terms with the CLP leader Siddaramaiah, and had funded the latter’s birthday bash held in Davanagere in August 2022.
