Karnataka bypolls: Voting underway in two assembly segments

Voting was underway for bypolls to two Assembly segments--Bagalkot and Davanagere South in Karnataka on Thursday.

The polls were necessitated by the deaths of senior Congress MLAs H Y Meti and Shamanur Shivashankarappa. Counting of votes will be taken up on May 4.

Although the outcome of these by-elections is unlikely to have an immediate impact on state politics, the contest is seen as a matter of prestige for both the ruling Congress and the opposition BJP.

While the Congress faces the challenge of retaining both seats, the BJP is aiming to wrest them and deliver a setback to the ruling party, which is currently witnessing an "internal power struggle" over leadership.

Over 2.59 lakh eligible voters are expected to cast their votes in 319 polling stations in Bagalkot, where nine candidates are in the fray.

In Davanagere South, over 2.31 lakh voters are expected to exercise their franchsie across 284 polling stations, with 25 candidates contesting.

Elaborate security arrangements have been made for the smooth conduct of bypolls, officials said.

The BJP has fielded former MLA and 2023 defeated candidate Veerabhadrayya Charantimath from Bagalkot, and a fresh face, Srinivas T Dasakariyappa, from Davanagere South.

The Congress has given tickets to family members of the late legislators in both constituencies. Umesh Meti is the son of H Y Meti, while Samarth Mallikarjun is the grandson of Shamanur Shivashankarappa.

Samarth's father, S S Mallikarjun, is a minister in the Siddaramaiah-led Cabinet and in charge of Davanagere district, while his mother, Prabha Mallikarjun, is a Member of Parliament from the region.

The BJP is looking to make gains in the bypolls and energise its cadre ahead of the 2028 Assembly elections. For the Congress, retaining both seats is crucial, as a loss could be seen as a negative verdict on the performance of the Siddaramaiah-led dispensation.

Muslim disgruntlement appears to be a concern for the Congress in Davanagere South. With 14 of the 25 candidates in the fray belonging to the community, there are apprehensions within the party about a split in votes, which could benefit the BJP.

The community had strongly demanded the Congress ticket for Davanagere South, given its significant presence in the constituency.

Some factions within the party had opposed giving the ticket to the Shamanur family.

Although the Congress persuaded rebel candidate Sadiq Pailwan to withdraw, he remains in the fray as the move came after the deadline for withdrawal of nominations.

In Bagalkot too, the Congress faced some dissidence, with other members of Meti's family seeking the ticket. Siddaramaiah's intervention helped resolve differences to an extent, and they campaigned together.

The BJP, in contrast, saw little dissidence over candidate selection, with its leaders campaigning in unity.

Top state leaders from both parties campaigned extensively in the two segments. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, his deputy D K Shivakumar, and several ministers camped in and toured the constituencies for over a week. The BJP, however, took repeated digs at them, claiming it "reflected the fear of defeat."

In the 2023 Assembly elections, H Y Meti defeated Charantimath by a margin of 5,878 votes in Bagalkot, while Shivashankarappa defeated BJP's B G Ajay Kumar by 27,888 votes in Davanagere South.