In a hut, a former CM’s son fasts to chart Independent course

Though baffling, the engineering graduate’s campaign against “buying of votes” has voters and even his opponents’ supporters streaming in from villages around to meet the “enlightened” politician.

Patel won the Assembly elections under the JD(S) banner in 2004, but quit the party and resigned as an MLA in October when the Gowdas failed to keep up their end of the power-sharing agreement with the BJP, dissolving the government.

In November, Patel floated the Suvarna Yuga Party to fight the 2008 elections. The party has fielded relatively fresh candidates in the 30 constituencies that it is contesting. Rattled, the JD(S) has fielded Patel’s right-hand man Ramesh as its candidate from Channagiri.

While his opponents are frenetically on the move, campaigning from village to village, with the second phase of polling just four days away, Patel serenely sips on honeyed water with some lime. “I abhor this practice of buying votes by dispersing alcohol and money before the elections. I want to cleanse the system, and to do that, I have to cleanse myself,” he says.

Patel has imposed similar restrictions on his other candidates.

“They can campaign how they want without using money power. For the full campaign they have been given only Rs 10 lakh,” Patel says.

Even his opponents’ supporters visit him often for blessings. “I am from the Congress and will not vote for you sir, but you have my complete respect for conducting your campaign this way,” a Congress worker told him on Monday. Patel replied: “Respect is always good, but better when it manifests itself as votes.”

Incidentally, it was his present Congress opponent, Vatal Rajanna, who as an Independent had bested his father J H Patel in the 1999 elections in his home constituency. In 2004, Patel defeated Rajanna, using a campaign not too different from the present. “Even in 2004, I did not roam from village to village, but held a padyatra across the constituency. I walked 48 km, and at the end, around 10,000 people had joined me,” Patel claims.

This time round too, he has certainly impressed the voters. Many villagers stream in every day to touch his feet and shake his hand. After hearing of his plan to sit on a fast, the local populace also visits him to make contributions, which Patel usually accepts.

“My day starts at 5 am, I go for a small walk, then I settle in the hut for the rest of the day to meet those who come. I have stayed here for the last 15 days and will do so till the results are declared,” Patel says.

However, the respect for the candidate might not really convert into votes, particularly with the majority tribal and Muslim lobby in Channagiri. Ganesh Nayak, who voted for Patel in 2004, points out: “We voted for him last time, but he has not done too much for his home constituency. Here we face water and housing problems, the roads are pathetic.”

Out of the 1.54 lakh voters in Channagiri, around 78,000 are from SC/STs, 30,000 are Muslims, while 32,000 belong to the Lingayat and other castes.

Asked if he would continue his campaign even if he lost, Patel promises: “Winning or losing is not of any concern at all. I believe what I am doing is the correct thing, and I will continue on my right path.”