Divided house in Kolar, Cong faces uphill battle to retake lost fortress

PATCHY IMPLEMENTATION of welfare schemes, the recent murder of a young college girl in Hubballi, the Narendra Modi factor, and a silent mutiny by a top leader have landed the Congress on a sticky wicket in the reserved constituency of Kolar in south Karnataka that was once its bastion.

The Congress at present holds five of the eight Assembly segments of Kolar, which is a Scheduled Caste ( SC)- reserved parliamentary constituency. It was a seat that state minister K H Muniyappa won seven straight times from 1991 before losing in 2019. The veteran leader is said to be sulking over the party’s decision to deny the ticket to his son- in- law Chikka Pedanna, a real estate businessman.

The Congress f ielded K V Gowtham, a newcomer to Kolar whom few people have heard of or seen, af ter four of the f ive Congress MLAS in Kolar opposed Pedanna’s candidature.

“This poll battle has become a matter of prestige for Muniyappa. He is keen to ensure that the new candidate loses so that he gains the upper hand,” says a BJP worker.

The Congress is facing the JD( S) that has a large support base among the nearly 40% Vokkaligas. The H D Deve Gowda- led party — it got the seat in the seat- sharing agreement though the incumbent MP is from the BJP — has fielded Mallesh Babu, a member of the Bhovi SC community who is considered acceptable to all, including Muniyappa.

On the campaign trail, the JD( S) is speaking the BJP language to wean away the support that the Congress has traditionally enjoyed among Dalits, who make up nearly 25% of the electorate.

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