Karnataka polls: Can Congress break the jinx in KR Nagar?
However, there is slight anti-incumbency buildup against him, as his name surfaced in a lake encroachment case, as alleged by former Mysuru DC Rohini Sindhuri.
Published: 15th April 2023 11:25 AM | Last Updated: 15th April 2023 11:25 AM | A+A A-
Image used for representational purpose only. (File photo)
MYSURU: Krishnaraja Nagar (KR Nagar) assembly segment is once again set to witness a tight fight between the JDS and Congress. After winning by a slender margin of less than 1,800 votes in the previous election, MLA Sa Ra Mahesh is making sincere efforts to ensure a fourth victory. Congress candidate Ravishankar, too, is leaving no stone unturned to score a win this time.
Krishnaraja Nagar constituency, which has over 2.10 lakh voters, is the turf of the JDS leader, who achieved a hat-trick here. Though the Congress has managed to give him a tough fight, it has failed to grab hold of the constituency in a region considered a stronghold of the Janata Dal (Secular), and dominated by Vokkaliga leaders.
Mahesh, who is credited with bringing various welfare programmes to the taluk, and spending MLA funds freely for the development of the constituency, became the local leader next door. Easily accessible to his constituents and responsive to people’s grievances made him popular, and he was also made tourism minister during the reign of the JDS-Congress coalition government in 2018.
However, there is slight anti-incumbency buildup against him, as his name surfaced in a lake encroachment case, as alleged by former Mysuru DC Rohini Sindhuri. His public spat with the IAS officer and the episodes that following earned him a bad name, though the report submitted in the case went in his favour.
Meanwhile, Congress candidate Ravishankar, a close aide of Siddaramaiah, is preparing to give Mahesh a a tough fight, as he had done in the previous election, having closed the gap between them to just around 1,800 votes. Congress leaders are expected to pitch tent in and around the constituency to campaign in his favour to ensure his victory this time. If a combination of factors plays out right, it could just get him the seat.
The BJP, though a silent player in the constituency, can this time spoil the game plan of both parties as saffron party candidate Venkatesh Hosahalli has been successful in reaching out to booth level workers to increase its voter base.
