Keen contest on cards in first phase of K’taka polls

The stakes are high for the Congress, which is making a strong bid to regain its lost base in old Mysore districts amid a stiff challenge by the JDS. The Congress won 24 seats last time.

The JDS, which made surprise inroads into several Congress bastions in the 2004 elections, won in 34 constituencies in this belt and had a good showing in Vokkaliga-dominated belts of Mandya, Hassan and Tumkur.

The Congress is going all out to win a majority of seats, seeking to overcome the challenge being thrown by JDS and BJP which is also trying to gain foothold in the Vokkaliga belt.

The Congress, BJP and JDS have fielded candidates in all the segments facing election in this phase, while the BSP is contesting in 86.

For all key players, particularly the Congress and BJP, the focus has been on Bangalore city, which accounts for 28 seats out of 89.

The Congress, BJP and JDS have promised special attention to address infrastructural needs of the cosmopolitan city.

The Congress and BJP have approached the electorate on the stability plank and are seeking a clear majority for their respective party governments, reminding them of the ‘bitter experiences’ they had with two coalition governments in the last four years.

But a contradiction seemed to be haunting JDS, which hardly laid emphasis on the stability factor.

The JDS has come under attacks from the Congress and BJP for betraying them. BJP’s main slogan is “punish betrayers” after the JDS let it down on the power transfer issue.

JDS was not only starved for campaigners as a majority of its front ranking leaders like M P Prakash, G T Devegowda, B N Bacchegowda and half of its 58 MLAs of the dissolved assembly bid goodbye to the party, accusing Gowda and family of behaving in a dictatorial manner and for betraying BJP over power transfer”, but also for candidates in several constituencies.

However, it was a case of “surplus and rebellion” in the Congress and BJP camps, which competed with each other in luring JDS men.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Congress President Sonia Gandhi, BJP president Rajnath Singh, its prime ministerial candidate L K Advani, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, H D Devegowda, Kumaraswamy, BJP’s chief ministerial nominee B S Yeddyurappa and former chief minister S M Krishna of Congress have undertaken electioneering in parts of the state, drumming up voters support for their parties.