Bypolls in Davangere South and Bagalkot could witness intense battle

The announcement of byelections to Davangere South and Bagalkot Assembly constituencies on April 9, the two Assembly seats held by the ruling Congress, is set to ignite an intense fight between the Congress — keen to retain the seats — and the Opposition BJP that expects a victory to be a vote against the dispensation. The counting of votes will take place on May 4.

The byelection has been necessitated following the death of two former Ministers, Shamanur Shivashankarappa and H.Y. Meti, and the announcement comes in the midst of the Budget session, which will end on March 27.

With the last date for filing nominations being March 23, both the ruling and the Opposition parties have a little over a week to finalise the candidates and prevent any possible rebellion within their ranks. The last date for withdrawal of nomination is March 26. A win here will give victorious candidates two years tenure with the next Assembly elections scheduled in 2028.

For the Congress, the byelection comes at a time when the party is gripped by confusion over the leadership between Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, who is covertly pushing for a change. Besides the BJP’s narrative against the government over a lack of development at the cost of funding guarantees, the ruling party is now stuck over the issue of internal reservation among the Scheduled Castes, and reduction of reservation to Scheduled Tribes.

Since the 1999 election, the fortunes in Bagalkot have swung both ways, with the BJP winning four of the six elections held so far. Former Minister and five -time legislator late H.Y. Meti, who had earlier won from Guledgudda, won the 2013 and 2023 elections. In Davangere South, a new constituency formed after the delimitation in 2008, veteran Congress leader and former Minister late Shamanur Shivaranakappa won all the four elections held since then.

The Congress is witnessing an intense fight over the ticket in Davangere South, where the deceased leader’s family is keen on the ticket being provided to a family member. Mines and Horticulture Minister and son of the deceased leader, S.S. Mallikarjun, represents Davangere North constituency, while his wife, Prabha Mallikarjun, represents Davangere Lok Sabha constituency. A section of Muslim leaders in the party, however, is keen on fielding a Muslim candidate in the constituency, considering a high concentration of Muslims in the constituency. Mr. Mallikarjun has already aired his displeasure publicly against this and has been critical of Housing Minister B.Z. Zameer Ahmed Khan, who is believed to be lobbying for a Muslim candidate. The Congress leaders will have to do a tightrope walk in selection of a candidate.

The selection of candidates in Bagalkot is being narrowed down to the family members, with late Meti’s two sons and two daughters being aspirants. The family members are believed to have conveyed to the party leadership that the family would work unitedly for the candidate of the leadership’s choice. Meanwhile, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Saturday said that the party is ready to face the byelections.

With respect to the Opposition, these two constituencies are being fought by the BJP as the JD(S) does not have a dominant presence here. The BJP has already commenced poll preparations by appointing in-charge leaders for both constituencies and holding preliminary meetings. The names of the probable candidates, too, have been forwarded by the party’s State core committee to the Centre which will take the final call.