Karnataka Elections: Will HD Kumaraswamy continue to rule in Channapatna?

Will he retain his seat or be crushed by BJP's Yogeshwara?

Amid the fiery campaigning for electoral assembly elections in Karnataka, an intense battle is fought in the Channapatna constituency, which is currently represented by the former chief minister and Janata Dal (Secular) chief HD Kumaraswamy.

Located in the Ramanagara district, Channapatna is a part of the Bengaluru Rural Lok Sabha constituency, which has been held by the Janata Dal (Secular) party for many terms in the recent past. Kumaraswamy is facing stiff competition in his home base from BJP leader CP Yogeshwara. Gangadhar S is an opponent for the seat, from the Congress Party.

Population and Distribution of Voters

Known as a land of toys, the constituency comprises 31 city wards and has about 2,30,327 voters, out of which 1.10 lakh hail from the Vokkaliga community. Of the rest, 29,000 voters are Muslims, 42,000 are from the Scheduled Castes, and 15,000 are from the Scheduled Tribes.

Political History

CP Yogeshwara of BJP is already an established leader having won Assembly polls five times – on an SP ticket in 2013, through BJP in 2011 bypoll, through Congress in 2008 and 2004, and independently in 1999.
The Karnataka assembly elections in 2018 witnessed the defeat of BJP’s Yogeshwara who garnered 66,465 votes, by Kumaraswamy who won with 87,995 votes. This came after Yogeshwara defeated Kumaraswamy’s wife in 2013 by a slender margin of over 700 votes, forcing Kumaraswamy to contest from Channapatna as well as Ramanagara seats in 2018. Kumaraswamy later gave up the Ramanagara seat, which his wife won in the bypoll.

Latest Campaigns

The BJP has been actively campaigning in Channapatna, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed an election rally on April 30. The PM took on the Congress and JD(S) for their “dirty politics” as well as talked about the rich traditions of the place. He appealed to the people by referring to the traditional wooden toys business and emphasised on the involvement of the locals in the same. He has a good connect with the local community there, having once voiced for the people of the constituency in a special episode of ‘Mann ki Baat’.

On the other hand, on May 4, Kumaraswamy took a dig at the PM and other central BJP leaders for visiting the state only during election periods and not during natural disasters. He also questioned Congress and BJP over the irrigation issues, referring to the Krishna Tribunal verdict.

On May 5, Kumaraswamy was also seen slamming the BJP for conducting a road show right before the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) exam and urging them to postpone it. The BJP agreed to shorten the length of the event.

The Election Schedule

The 224-member Karnataka Assembly elections will be held on May 10 and the counting of votes is scheduled on May 13. Political parties have been actively engaged in campaigns by conducting rallies and road shows, the latest being PM Modi’s address in the Bellari constituency. Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar stated that about 9.17 lakh people are first-time voters in the election.