Tumkur Lok Sabha seat may not be a cakewalk for Deve Gowda
Bengaluru, Mar 25: A tough battle appears to be on the cards for JDS patriarch H D Deve Gowda in Tumkur Lok Sabha constituency as he is contesting from a Congress bastion amid disquiet in both his party and ally Congress over allocation of seats and tickets, say analysts.
They, however, do acknowledge the former prime minister's potential to bounce back as he did by winning the Kanakapura byelection in 2002 after he had lost to G Puttaswamy Gowda of Congress in 1999 from Hassan.
Though Tumakuru was allotted to JDS under the electoral arrangement between allies Congress and JD(S), sitting Congress MP S P Muddahanume Gowda has filed his papers from the seat, making it clear that Deve Gowda may not have an easy going.
It remains to be seen if MuddahanumeGowda remains in the contest but on Monday he appeared firm on giving a fight. "I'm filing my nomination as the Congress candidate. I'm not filing the nomination for fun," he said
According to reports, K N Rajanna, another Congress leader and former MLA, has also filed his nomination on Monday from Tumkur as an independent candidate.
The Congress and BJP candidates have won ten and four times from the same constituency. It was a Congress stronghold from 1952 to 1989, till it lost ground to the BJP.
G S Basavaraj is the BJP candidate. He had won three times before on Congress ticket and once on BJP ticket. He was defeated by Muddahanume Gowda in 2014 elections.
"Deve Gowda faces a tough fight in Tumkur. There is already disquiet in Janata Dal (Secular) about how the family is being given importance.
"Defeat of Anita Kumaraswamy (daughter-in-law of Deve Gowda) twice from Ramnagar constituency is quite fresh in people's minds," political analyst Sandeep Shastri told PTI here.
The Vokkaliga leader has fielded his grandsons Nikhil K and Prajwal Revanna from Mandya and Hassan respectively. This has apparently left some of the senior JDS leaders, who were hopeful of getting tickets, unhappy.
Ticket denial by Congress to Muddahanume Gowda has created some discontentment within local Congress leadership. Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara, who is a prominent leader from Tumkur, had met Deve Gowda and requested him to return the seat to Congress if he was not contesting from the constituency.
A section of local Congress leaders fears that giving Deve Gowda a chance to contest from Tumkuru would be like giving their bastion on a platter to JDS.
Harish Ramaswamy, political science professor at Karnatak University (Dharwad) and Shastri do not deny Deve Gowda's capability to bounce back as he had done earlier.
"Deve Gowda has all the capacity to bounce back. If you remember he had lost Kanakapura Lok Sabha seat in 1999 to G Puttaswamy of the Congress, but bounced back by winning the same seat in 2002 byelection. Deve Gowda could register a win in Congress backyard Kanakapura because he is a charismatic leader," he said.
Ramaswamy said the Congress had been pushing for Deve Gowda to contest from Bengaluru North constituency, but Deve Gowda opted for Tumakuru, may be because of the presence of more MLAs from JDS than Congress in the constituency, Ramaswamy said.
"In Bengaluru North, the Congress and the JDS have five and two MLAs respectively, but the Congress holds just one Assembly segment in Tumkur and JDS three. Deve Gowda could have considered this point before making the decision to contest from Tumkuru," he said.
Moreover, Deve Gowda would have been wary of the earlier defeat in Kanakapura as some parts of it now form the Bengaluru North constituency, Ramaswamy argued.
Also, the JDS think tank feels people would prefer Deve Gowda over Muddahanume Gowda, as the former prime minister is a more prominent Vokkaliga leader, he said.
"Deve Gowda is also known for playing emotional card to woo people," Ramaswamy said.
Tumkur district comes under the Old Mysore region. The JDS has not won an MP seat from there, but C N Bhaskarappa had won in 1996 as undivided Janata Dal candidate.
Tumakuru constituency, a dryland region, is spread over 6,706 sq.km. It had 15,94,703 registered voters - 7,97,512 males and 7,97,191 females - till January 2019.
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Kerala lynching: CM assures justice, CPI (M) targets RSS-BJP over incident
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): The Kerala government on Monday assured stringent action in the mob lynching of a Chattisgarh native mistaken to be a thief, and promised justice to the family, even as the ruling CPI(M) targeted the RSS over the assault, a charge denied by the BJP.
Ramnarayan (31), was allegedly beaten to death on Wednesday after being accused of involvement in theft at Kizhakeattappallam near Walayar in Palakkad district.
With the issue sending shock waves across the state, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday described the incident as "deeply disturbing".
Assuring justice to his family, who have arrived in the state, Vijayan said such acts tarnish the reputation of a progressive society like Kerala and are completely unacceptable.
State minister M B Rajesh claimed racial slurs were made at the victim and that the attackers were RSS workers. Ruling CPI (M) state secretary M V Govindan also alleged that RSS-BJP workers were behind the crime.
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In a statement issued by the CM's office, Vijayan said strict action would be taken against those responsible for the crime.
A special investigation team of the district police is probing the incident, he said, adding that instructions have been issued to thoroughly examine the details of the case and initiate all necessary legal proceedings.
The government will also review the matter and ensure appropriate compensation to the victim's family, Vijayan added.
He called for collective vigilance to prevent the recurrence of such incidents in the future.
His remarks came a day after opposition Congress and the victim's family demanded compensation and an investigation under stringent laws, including the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
The brother of deceased man told reporters on Sunday that the family would not accept the body until their demands, including compensation of Rs 25 lakh, are met.
Kerala ministers K Rajan and Rajesh strongly condemned the incident and said it was not just a mob lynching case but racial abuse was involved in it.
The ministers said the accused had attacked the deceased man, calling him a "Bangladeshi" and beat him to death.
"The government will ensure a foolproof probe into the incident, and no one involved in the crime will be spared," Revenue Minister Rajan told reporters in Thrissur.
He said an amount not less than Rs 10 lakh would be granted from the Chief Minister's Distress Relief Fund (CMDRF) to the deceased man's family and a cabinet meeting would take a decision in this regard.
LSGD Minister Rajesh also said Ramnarayan was branded as a Bangladeshi by the attackers.
While talking to reporters in Palakkad, he alleged that those who brutally assaulted and killed Ramnarayan were RSS workers.
The Chhattisgarh native, who reached Kerala in search of a job, became a victim of the "divisive politics" of Sangh Parivar, Rajesh further alleged.
"Branding a person as Bangladeshi came from racial politics. Ramnarayan was a victim of the racial poison spread by the Sangh Parivar in the country," he charged.
Rajesh also accused a section of the media of hiding the involvement of the RSS in the assault.
Stepping up the attack against the right-wing groups, CPI (M) state secretary M V Govindan alleged that RSS-BJP workers were the ones behind the crime.
"Those involved in the incident were accused in various criminal cases of RSS. All of them were identified. Such cruelties should not be allowed to repeat in the state," he said.
Expressing strong protest, the senior leader further said a society which believes in democratic values and secular principles cannot accept such crimes.
Senior BJP leader Kummanam Rajasekharan strongly rejected the charges against the saffron party and the RSS.
"Actually, why is politics mixed in such crimes. When a heinous crime like mob lynching happens, should it not be treated as an anti-social act," he told reporters here.
Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly, V D Satheesan urged the government to take urgent steps to provide financial assistance to the family of Ramnarayan.
Meanwhile, Palakkad Superintendent of Police Ajit Kumar said at present, the case was registered under sections of murder, and after a detailed probe, more would be added.
After verifying the caste certificate of the deceased man, SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act would also be invoked, he told reporters in Palakkad.
A 10-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been formed under the DSP (district crime branch) to probe the mob lynching incident. The SIT will be under the direction and supervision of the Pakakkad SP, he added.
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When reporters asked about the political background of the accused persons, the officer said it was being verified.
He said that the arrested persons were already facing police cases.
Five people have been arrested so far for allegedly beating Ramnarayan to death on suspicion of theft.
The injured man was rushed to the Palakkad District Government Hospital, where he later succumbed to his injuries.
