Ahead of the Karnataka polls 2018, Aditi Phadnis looks at where the major political parties stand in different regions of the state. Catch latest updates on Karnataka assembly elections 2018.
Coastal Karnataka (19 seats)
Districts: Dakshina Kannada, Udupi (South Canara) and Uttara Kannada (North Canara)
Karnataka Assembly Elections 2018 » In the 2013 election, because of the split in the vote of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) between the Karnataka Janata Pakshe of B S Yeddyurappa and the BJP, the Congress was able to drive home its advantage.
This time, on the surface it appears that all the factions in the BJP are together and want to establish a BJP government in Bengaluru. With the Janata Dal (Secular) having only a marginal presence in this area, in the 2018 assembly election it will be a straight fight between the two national parties.
Old Mysore (61 seats)
Districts: Mysuru, Mandya , Hassan, Chamarajnagar, Ramanagaram, Kolar, Chikkaballapur, Kodagu and Chikkamagaluru
This is the area owing allegiance to the erstwhile Maharaja of Mysore and is politically dominated by the Vokkaliga community. Dalits are present here in large numbers as well. Among Vokkaligas, immediate recall is for JD( S) founder, former Prime Minister, and former chief minister HD Deve Gowda, who belongs to Hassan. Politically influential, the BJP is not a traditional force in this region — it is dominated by the Congress and the JD(S). In 2013 the JD(S) got 40 seats in the assembly —the largest chunk of this came from this region.
Having said that, the BJP did badly in this region in the 2013 assembly election but reported victories with a large margin in the Lok Sabha elections less than a year later, possibly because of Narendra Modi’s image. Will that work this time ?
Bangalore (28 seats)
Districts: Bengaluru rural and urban
Bengaluru is a cosmopolitan city with a sizeable population of educated middle class who have origins in other state but have now made Karnataka their home. This vote bloc also leans towards the BJP. There is also an important migrant population — largely Tamil-speaking but also Malayalam- and Telugu-speaking — that is part of the Bengaluru electorate.
There are some rural enclaves attached to what is primarily an urban voting region. Issues like delivery of services, state of the physical infrastructure, corruption, land mafia and its connections with political leaders are all hotly contested issues.
But then, with its traditional vote bank and that of the minorities and more, the Congress is also a major player and not a mere pushover in this region.
No comments:
Post a Comment