The string of electoral defeats in Old Mysore region continued for the JD(S) on Tuesday. The party, which had largely benefited from what was seen as a consolidation of Vokkaliga votes in the 2018 Assembly elections, has lost all the elections held since, with the latest being in Sira. The loss comes at a time when the party is hit by an identity crisis and is seen as losing popularity among its traditional voter base.
Though the JD(S) was not banking on Rajarajeshwarinagar, it had pinned hopes on retaining the Sira seat after the death of its legislator B. Sathyanarayana. The defeat in Sira has been far more embarrassing as the party was relegated to third place despite the octogenarian party patriarch and former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda campaigning. This follows earlier defeats in Mandya and Tumakuru Lok Sabha constituencies during the 2019 general elections, and in the bypolls to Hunsur, K.R. Pet and Mahalaskhmi Layout Assembly constituencies in December 2019.
In Sira, it was a massive loss of votes as the party’s share declined from 41% in 2018 to about 20% this year. The BJP gained from 9.4% in 2018 to about 41% this year. In R.R. Nagar, the party saw its voter share decline from about 24% in 2018 to about 5%. Incidentally, both constituencies had a sizeable number of Vokkaliga voters whom the party was banking on. In fact, the entire Gowda clan, including former Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy and third-generation family members, had campaigned in Sira.
However, party sources said the JD(S) was not reading too much into the results. “The general elections are fought on different issues and bypolls are very specific, with the ruling party generally having the advantage,” a senior party leader said, while acknowledging that the JD(S) was a bit complacent in the initial phase of electioneering. “The candidate selection was delayed while workers and local leaders deserted the party. The party also banked heavily on the sympathy factor and fielded a political novice, which was a mistake.”
Another source in the party believed that the Kunchitiga-Vokkaliga votes may have got divided as all the top three candidates belonged to the same community.
HDK’s surprise comment
Taking many by surprise, Mr. Kumaraswamy said the bypoll results could be an indicator of the “sensitivity” shown by BJP government towards the public during the past 15 months. Taking to Twitter soon after the results were announced, he said he would not go into the details of how the bypolls were held. “I respect the verdict of the people,” the JD(S) leader tweeted.
