The Ballari district of North Karnataka, with its huge mineral resources, has been a high-profile constituency for many years due to the presence of mining barons and the money-muscle nexus, in line with the politics of Kadapa and Anantapur in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh.
The constituency, which is reserved for the Scheduled Tribes, is bustling with activity. The high-pitched campaigns were amplified by the presence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah, who held a huge public meeting in Hagaribommanahalli. Rallies and roadshows by other top leaders have increased by the day, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi also expected to address a rally soon.
The 50-minute drive from Ballari to Toranagallu Jindal airport, the starting point for many big guns on the Kalyana Karnataka trail, is adorned with flags of different hues. Toranagallu is the mid-point between Ballari and Hosapeta, which now comes under a new district, Vijayanagara.
In Hagaribommanahalli, where Shah rolled out the campaign, K Nemiraj Naik, who lost on a BJP ticket in the 2018 assembly elections, is now contesting under the Janata Dal (S) banner. But the fight is expected to be between sitting MLA Bheema Naik LBP of the Congress, and the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) B Ramanna.
Veteran B Sriramulu, who returned to the BJP after abandoning his rebel party, the Badavara Shramika Raithara Congress Party (BSRCP), has grown in stature and come a long way. A five-time MLA and one-time MP, he is contesting from Ballari (Rural) and is seeking the mandate for the sixth time, with Congress’ B Nagendra his main rival.
“Last time around we felt the need to support the BJP, and if you see the margin of victory in at least eight seats, our votes mattered. This time we’re aligning with the Congress as we feel the Ahinda agenda of Siddharamaiah provides us better clarity on reservations for Dalits. My community will benefit if Congress wins. BJP included it (Ahinda) in the last manifesto, but didn’t effectively implement it, and now the matter is at the Supreme Court,” said Jaganatha, of Karnataka Madiga Dandora.
Backed by 75 lakh voters, with large numbers in Hagaribommanahalli (in Ballari), and Raichur, the Madigas, who are now classified as Scheduled Castes, may turn out to be a deciding factor for the Grand Old Party.
Though Sonia Gandhi brought national focus to the constituency when she made her maiden Lok Sabha foray from here more than two decades ago, now Ballari district is a BJP bastion. Sonia’s huge debut victory against the late Sushma Swaraj in 1999 — a battle framed as Videshi Bahu vs. Swadeshi Beti — is now history.
For although Swaraj lost the high-voltage contest, she succeeded in establishing an emotional connect with the constituency, which has helped BJP establish itself as an alternative to both the Congress and the JD (S) in the state.
With a huge chunk of the SC and ST population, since 2008, the district has been voting for Sriramulu, a stalwart from the Valmiki community.
Mining baron Gali Janardhana Reddy has been out of politics for nearly a decade since he was arrested in 2015 for his involvement in the multi-crore illegal mining case, and the BJP disowned him.
Reddy has snapped his two-decade-old association with the BJP and returned to the electoral arena with his new Kalyana Rajya Pragati Paksha (KRPP) party. Once close associates, Sriramulu and Reddy’s own brothers — G Karunakara Reddy and G Somashekar Reddy — are unhappy with him and have severed ties.
The KRPP is expected to eat into BJP’s votes, especially in Ballari, where he is fielding his wife.
Since he is barred by the court from entering Ballari, he is contesting from Koppal, and is banking on the local Telugu-speaking Kannadigas
Despite the presence of the mining barons, Ballari is afflicted with poverty, underdevelopment, pollution (due to the hundreds of trucks carrying ore), poor sanitation, and a host of health issues, like tuberculosis. But these issues are unlikely to come into play in spite of many citizen groups actively educating voters over the last three months about their rights with respect to their health.
“Many are saying the Congress is on the rise and that it’ll sweep north Karnataka. But everywhere you see BJP national leaders, including Modi. Last time too, on voting day, everything changed in favour of the saffron party. I hope they do something for the district, which is still very backward in terms of pollution and health,” said Suresh, a health worker with an NGO.
A worried BJP has despatched all its stars, including the Prime Minister, to woo the voters. Shah’s public meeting in Haggaribommanahalli constituency on Thursday attracted huge crowds, and he would be back for a roadshow in Ballari on May 6. Repeated rounds by star campaigners are scheduled, and huge preparations are on for Modi’s visit to Vijayanagara assembly constituency on May 2.
Meanwhile, Reddy is milking his party’s symbol, the football, for all its worth. “I was played like a football by everybody, including my own (family and party). Now I’ll show them that I too can play football,” Reddy told reporters recently.
KRPP is by and large concentrating on certain districts in the Kalyana Karnataka (earlier Hyderabad-Karnataka) region, especially Ballari, Koppal, and Raichur.
Reddy is traveling to underdeveloped rural areas and allegedly handing out goodies to woo the people.
“Whoever we vote for, our lives won’t change. This is one time we get some household articles or cash. I like the BJP,” said a young first-time voter. But his grandmother struck a contradictory note: “We got a house from the Indiramma scheme. We’ll vote only for the Congress.”
Rich in natural resources, the district has 25 percent of India’s iron ore reserves. Until 1994, a handful of mining companies operated here, including the state-owned NMDC. Subsequently, the government issued mining licenses to many private operators. But still this remains a backward region. In spite of jobs in mining, 75 percent of the labour force still depends on agriculture for its livelihood.
Ballari has 11,40,899 voters (5,61,718 men, 5,79,012 women, and 169 sexual minorities) who account for 63.46 percent of the total population of the district. There are 16,827 voters above 80 years, and 14, 871 disabled voters who will be able to vote from home.
The 34,265 first-time voters who have been enrolled till April 1, 2023, are considered crucial as their votes can go either way. We will know which way they went on May 13, the counting day, after the single-phase polls end on May 10.
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