Karnataka

Council bypoll: last-ditch efforts to woo voters in Kodagu

Garnering support: Congress candidate B.G. Mittu Chengappa (centre) seeking votes at Srimangala Gram Panchayat in Kodagu on Wednesday.

SRIMANGALA (KODAGU DISTRICT): The Congress candidate, B.G. Mittu Chengappa, is making all-out efforts to register victory in the bylection to the Legislative Council from the local bodies in Kodagu while the Bharatiya Janata Party’s S.G. Medappa is going all out to foil the chances of his Congress rival.

Polling will be held on Friday.

There is no usual fanfare or enthusiasm associated with general elections here because only 1,397 voters will be involved in this election, including 1,242 gram panchayat members.

But, Mr. Chengappa and Mr. Medappa, who have locked horns in a straight contest, are in no mood to relent. Mr. Chengappa is conducting a whirlwind tour of gram panchayats and meeting its elected representatives.

Local leaders including president of the Kodagu unit of the Congress Veena Achaiah; former ministers M.M. Nanaiah and Suma Vasant; former MLC C.S. Arun Machaiah, whose resignation has caused the vacancy; and president of the Kodagu unit of the Janata Dal (Secular) A.S. Appaiah visited various panchayats along with Mr. Chengappa and met the voters on Wednesday.

Mr. Chengappa’s prospects appear bright in Somwarpet taluk where the former Minister B.A. Jivijaya has thrown his lot with the Congress candidate. “Victory of the Congress candidate is important for me and we are at it,” Mr. Jivijaya said.

In Kushalnagar area, majority of the members in the town panchayat will go with the Congress candidate and so will the Janata Dal (S) members, V.P. Shashidhar, a Janata Dal (S) member in the Kodagu Zilla Panchayat, who is set to join the Congress, told The Hindu.

The Kodagu unit of the Janata Dal (S) has declared support for Mr. Chengappa. Mr. Shashidhar has considerable clout with the electorate in Somwarpet taluk.

The Congress has a majority in the Somwarpet Taluk Panchayat and the Kushalnagar Town Panchayat, and 10 of 11 zilla panchayat members from Somwarpet taluk are from the party.

The BJP is in power in the 11-member Somwarpet Town Panchayat.

P.C. Hasainar, a Congress leader from Siddapura, said the prospects of the Congress was “very good” since the former MLC A.K. Subbaiah had openly come out with support to Mr. Chengappa.

A majority of the members of the Siddapura Gram Panchayat, one of the biggest gram panchayats in Kodagu with 24 members, would vote for the Congress, he said.

President of the Virajpet taluk unit of the BJP M.M. Ravindra, who spoke to The Hindu in Gonicoppa in Virajpet taluk, exuded confidence saying that Mr. Medappa would emerge winner in the election.

The deeds of the BJP Government since assuming power would stand Mr. Medappa in good stead, he said. His views were endorsed by Rajiv Bopaiah, president of the Kodagu District BJP Yuva Morcha.

The BJP claims that many Congress voters would cross-vote to its advantage. The party banks on the domination it has in Madikeri taluk.

It has the Madikeri City Municipal Council and Madikeri Taluk Panchayat in its control. Of the seven zilla panchayat members from this taluk, six belong to the BJP and the other to the Congress.

President of the Somwarpet Town Panchayat Nalini Ganesh told The Hindu that the BJP would win if all representatives of the party voted for Mr. Medappa.

The situation favours the Congress-Janata Dal (S) combine in Virajpet taluk where a majority of the members of the 16-member town panchayat are likely to vote for the Congress.

The Congress and the BJP have nine seats each in the BJP-ruled 19-member Virajpet Taluk Panchayat while there is one Janata Dal (S) member.

The independent candidate in the fray, S.P. Mahadevappa, claims to cut into the Lingayat vote bank, which he feels, will affect the chances of the BJP candidate. However, the BJP has denied his theory.

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