Karnataka polls: Siddaramaiah ‘welcomes’ BJP rival; DKS vows to ‘fight’

Karnataka Congress bigwigs Siddaramaiah and D K Shivakumar on Wednesday (April 12) seemed unfazed by the BJP’s decision to field formidable leaders against the duo in the upcoming polls. State Congress chief Shivakumar asserted that “there should be a fight in politics” and added that his life was “a struggle” and he would “continue to fight”.

Announcing its first list of 189 candidates on Tuesday, the BJP pitted senior minister V Somanna against Leader of Opposition in the Assembly, Siddaramaiah, in Varuna constituency, while R Ashoka will take on Shivakumar in Kanakapura in the May 10 Assembly elections.

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“Let him contest, I welcome him…whoever contests against me, I welcome them,” said former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.

Shivakumar said: “I wish him (Ashoka) good luck. There should be a fight in politics. It is not new to me, as I fought against HD Deve Gowda in 1985 and later against HD Kumaraswamy. My life is a struggle, I will continue to fight.”

BJP strategy

According to party sources, the BJP leadership’s move seems to be aimed at keeping Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar tied down to their respective constituencies so that their campaigning and strategising in other constituencies for a Congress victory are limited.

Both Shivakumar and Siddaramaiah reportedly told the Congress central leadership that they would visit their constituencies only for filing their nomination and would devote their entire time to campaigning in favour of other Congress candidates to ensure the party’s win in most of the segments.

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Somanna belongs to the Lingayat community, which has a large presence in Varuna, while Ashoka is seen as BJP’s prominent Vokkaliga face, the community to which Shivakumar also belongs. Somanna will also contest from Chamarajanagar, and Ashoka from Padmanabhanagar segment, which he currently represents.

BJP’s loyal soldiers

Recalling that he had campaigned for Siddaramaiah during the Chamundeshwari bypolls when they were in the same party and had worked with him as Cabinet colleagues, Somanna said the Varuna constituency was not new to him. “I will do my job,” he added.

Commenting on being fielded against Shivakumar, Ashoka said as a “loyal soldier of the party”, he would abide by the diktat of his “commanders” Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

“I have been given the task of contesting from Kanakapura. I was not aware of it, nor have I asked for it. But as a disciplined soldier of the party, I will abide by the decision. I will play my role in ensuring that the party’s strategy to win this election is successful,” he said.

Noting that political stalwarts like Indira Gandhi and Deve Gowda, among others, had also lost elections, Ashoka said, “People of Kanakapura want development, and I’m confident that they will bless me to bring in a double-engine government under Modi’s leadership…. The party has given me strength and I will fight.”

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Regarding his contest against Siddaramaiah, Somanna said the party had given him the responsibility with a lot of trust, and he would try his best to fulfil those expectations.

“I had earlier become MLA in Govindarajanagar in 25–30 days. I will try to repeat the same in Varuna this time with the blessings of the people there,” he said. Somanna had earlier said he would not contest against Siddaramaiah.

“A game of chess”

In Kolar, the second seat from where Siddaramaiah is planning to contest, BJP has fielded Varthur Prakash, who has won twice from the segment as an Independent.

Commenting on Ashoka contesting against him from Kanakapura, Shivakumar said politics is “a game of chess”, and both Congress and BJP are playing the game.

Asked whether Congress, in a retaliatory move, would field a strong candidate against Ashoka in Padmanabhanagar, the other segment from where he is contesting, the KPCC chief said, “V Raghunatha Naidu is our candidate there…. There is also pressure to field DK Suresh (Bengaluru Rural MP) from there, but we have announced Naidu’s name. We will discuss.”

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Former minister CP Yogeshwar from the BJP will once again cross swords with Janata Dal (Secular) leader and former Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy in Channapatna.

(With agency inputs)