But where was Vajpayee?

As Karnataka voted in the third and final phase of the election on Thursday, one national leader who was missed is former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

As Karnataka voted in the third and final phase of the election on Thursday, one national leader who was missed is former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

As the poll process in 69 seats in eight northern districts hit the final lap, remarks often heard around these constituencies were: 8220;Vajpayee did some good work8221;, 8220;this road was laid during Vajpayee8217;s time8221; and 8220;why is Vajpayee not campaigning?8221;

If many families across rural Karnataka still identify the Congress with Indira Gandhi, many people in Gulbarga, a region that provided the party the momentum to emerge as the single largest one in 2004, seem to identify the BJP with Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

8220;A few years ago, motorists weren8217;t willing to drive along the 300 km Bagalkot-Bijapur-Gulbarga road. But that changed during Vaypayee8217;s time,8221; says Chandrakant Bhosle, 27, a taxi driver from Bagalkot.

8220;We voted for Vajpayee last time because he was pro-development,8221; says Nagaraj Naik a resident of the Gulbarga rural region.

Riding on the back of the NDA government8217;s rule at the Centre, the BJP won 33 of the 69 seats in the region during the 2004 assembly polls, the Congress got 13 and the JDS 10. This time around, this third phase region has assumed crucial importance since neither the Congress nor the BJP is believed to have established a distinct edge in the first two phases of polls held on May 10 and May 16. Both parties now need to win at least three fourths of the seats in this region to be in a position to form a government on their own. The JDS, whose leader, former chief minister H.D. Kumaraswamy, spent a sizable amount of his rule attempting to build a base in the region, is expected to be a close contender for many seats.

The Congress is relying on the anti-incumbency factor and the support of a sizable minority population in the region to make gains and establish itself once again. 8220;We should get around 40 seats in this region this time. There is an anti-incumbency factor that will be important,8221; says KPCC president Mallikarjun Kharge, himself a candidate from Chittapur constituency in Gulbarga district.

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The Bahujan Samaj Party, whose leader Mayawati campaigned for a day in select regions, is expected to improve on its 1.7 per cent vote share from the current polls and is likely to trouble the Congress in particular.

Kharge, however, rules out the BSP making a serious dent. 8220;The party is not strong. It is dependent on a few individual candidates who can draw some votes,8221; he says.

The Samajawadi Party after focusing attention on the second phase of the polls has been a fringe player in the final phase.