Karnataka Elections 2023: Will BJP retain its position in Shivamogga with Yediyurappa, Eshwarappa out of electoral politics?

S N Channabasappa from Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) vs Aynur Manjunath from Janata Dal (Secular) vs H C Yogesh from Indian National Congress (INC)

The Shivamogga constituency will witness S N Channabasappa from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Aynur Manjunath from the Janata Dal (Secular), and H C Yogesh from Indian National Congress (INC) going head to head in the upcoming Karnataka Elections, which will commence on May 10 with the results to be announced on May 13.

The winning party requires  113 out of 224 seats to form the Government in Karnataka.

Among the three contestants, representing three major political parties in the State, two are new faces -- while H C Yogesh and Channabasappa are sitting members of Shivamogga City Corporation, Ayanur Manjunath was an aspirant from Shivamogga representing the BJP, who then quit the party earlier on May 3 and joined JD(S) to become a candidate from the Assembly segment.

The BJP waited until the last day to announce its candidate for Shivamogga constituency and eventually picked Channabasappa, who once went to jail for his hate speech against former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.

Two big retirements

Two big leaders hailing from the Shivamogga district -- former Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa and former Deputy Chief Minister K S Eshwarappa --  have retired from electoral politics.

However, despite retirement, Yediyurappa still holds a formidable influence in the district. The BJP has won six times since 1983, while the Congress has managed to win only twice.

In 2018, Eshwarappa won the seat by defeating K B Prasanna Kumar of the INC with a margin of 46,107 votes. Voter turnout in 2013 for the seat was 64.77%. In the 2008 Assembly Elections, the BJP won this seat by a margin of 32,419 votes (29.45%), earning 53.58% of the total votes cast. Voter turnout for this seat in the 2018 election was 66.73%.

From 1957 to 1978, Congress won the constituency five times. But in 1983, Congress suffered its first defeat in this district when the BJP raised the saffron flag in this district for the first time.

The Congress went on to win the 1985 elections, but again a BJP candidate won the following election in 1989.

Over the years, there has been a stiff battle between the two national parties.

Shivamogga is one of the important constituencies this election, especially after the last year’s disturbance between two communities.

2022 Shivamogga Riots

Tension prevailed in Shivamogga city on February 21, 2022, following the murder of 28-year-old Hindutva activist Harsha on February 20.

Vehicles set on fire by rioters during a procession, as tension spreads in Shivamogga town over the murder of a member of a Bajrang Dal member in Shivamogga. | Photo Credit: PTI

February 21 saw shops being vandalised, houses pelted with stones, and several two-wheelers and luggage carriers being gutted as the funeral procession of Harsha turned violent.

The processing, held despite prohibitory orders, was led by Rural Development and Panchayat Raj (RDPR) Minister K S Eshwarappa and Shivamogga MP B Y Raghavendra.

Making some significant changes in the norms for reservation in government jobs and education for backward classes and Scheduled Castes (SCs) in Karnataka, the Basavaraj Bommai government had on March 30, 2023, notified a decision taken by the cabinet to scrap the 4% backward classes quota for Muslims and to re-allot the Muslim OBC quota to the two most dominant communities in the state -- Lingayats and Vokkaligas.

The state Congress had hit back at the decision saying, "May it be backward classes, minorities, Vokkaligas or Lingayats, they are not beggars." Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) President D K Shivakumar had also accused the government of having contempt for Dalits and minorities.

Recently, on April 4, in a controversial statement ahead of May 10 assembly election in Karnataka, former deputy chief minister K S Eshwarappa said the BJP does not need a single vote from Muslims in Shivamogga constituency.

"Let us interact with people of all castes and enquire about the benefits they enjoyed during the BJP rule. Every community has benefited. There are around 60,000 Muslims in the city. We don’t want their votes. Of course, there are Muslims, who received our help individually whenever they were in need and who would vote for us. Nationalist Muslims will definitely vote for the BJP," he said.

Population distribution in Shivamogga

According to the data provided by provisional Census India statistics in 2011, Shivamogga assembly constituency had a population of 322,650 people that year, with 162,018 men and 160,632 females. Muslims make up 23.93% of the population, Christians 2.17%, and Hindus 72.76%.

There were 256,373 voters in the Shimoga Vidhan Sabha seat in 2018.

Economics of cultivation

According to a report by News18, Shimoga district was formerly referred to as the Rice Bowl. However, cashew nut trees have begun to encroach on the paddy fields in recent years. There are roughly 1,250 nut trading mandis in this area.

Shimoga’s economic zone has been established around Adike. Thus, the fluctuation of the Shimoga financial market affects the nut trade. According to experts, walnut is the backbone of the local economy.