In the 2023 assembly polls, the Congress fared well in Ballari (all five seats), Raichur (four out of seven), Yadgir (three out of four), Vijayanagara (two out of four) and Koppal (three out of five)…reports Asian Lite News
The BJP which had won all five seats in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections in the Kalyana Karnataka region, comprising seven districts, may not find it a cakewalk in the 2024 Lok Sabha election, given the rise of the Congress in 2023 assembly election.
The Kalyana Karnataka region or erstwhile Hyderabad Karnataka region has five Lok Sabha seats – Bidar, Gulbarga, Raichur, Bellary and Koppal.
The BJP has once again fielded Umesh Jadhav from Gulbarga (Kalaburagi) and Bhagwant Khuba. This time it has also fielded former Karnataka minister B Sriramulu from Bellary and Dr Basavaraj Kyavator from Koppal. The party has not yet announced its candidate from Raichur.
The Congress has is yet to announce its candidates for these five Lok Sabha seats. The announcement is expected on March 20.
If the assembly polls are any indication of the party’s performance in the Lok Sabha election, then in 2018 assembly elections, the BJP had won 17 seats while Congress bagged 19. The JD(S) too won in four places from here.
However, in the 2023 assembly election, the Congress substantially improved its position by winning 26 seats, while the BJP got 10 seats. The JD(S) secured two seats while two others too won from the region.
The popularity of the saffron party had been depleted substantially in 2023 compared to its performance in the 2018 assembly election.
In the 2023 assembly polls, the Congress fared well in Ballari (all five seats), Raichur (four out of seven), Yadgir (three out of four), Vijayanagara (two out of four) and Koppal (three out of five).
While Bidar backed the BJP in 2023 by giving it four out of six assembly seats, Kalaburagi (erstwhile Gulbarga) stood by its son of the soil Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge by handing the grand old party seven out of nine seats.
In the 2018 assembly election, the BJP emerged as the single largest party. While the Modi wave swept through the country in 2019, the poor show of the coalition government of Congress and JD(S) put the saffron party in an advantageous position, and it won 25 out of 28 Lok Sabha seats.
When the BJP returned to power for the second consecutive time in the 2019 Lok Sabha election, the 16-month-old coalition government of Congress and the JD(S) collapsed in June 2019 and the BJP came to power in Karnataka. It ruled the state for about four years.
The BJP could not maintain its popularity graph in 2023 and its effect is evident in the Kalyana Karnataka region as well.
It has to be seen how the saffron party could regain its position in the 2024 Lok Sabha election.
‘Mood in favour of BJP’
After the announcement of the Lok Sabha poll schedule, Karnataka Bharatiya Janata Party chief BY Vijayendra lauched a scathing attack on Congress and said that the mood across the state is in the favour of the BJP.
“Congress party despite being power in the state, they aren’t able to find candidates in any Lok Sabha constituencies. They’re trying hard to convince their minister to contest the elections but fortunately, the mood across the state is in the favour of the BJP and PM Modi…” said Karnataka BJP chief.
Karnataka has 28 Lok Sabha seats, out of 28, in 2019 BJP won 25 seats with a vote share of 51.7 per cent. Congress won 1 seat with a 32.1 per cent vote share, while JD(S) and Independent won one seat each in Karnataka.
The dates of the Karnataka Lok Sabha elections are set on May 4, and April 26, for 14 seats each.
Earlier, the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) came into effect on Saturday after the Election Commission of India announced the dates for elections to the Lok Sabha and four state assemblies, with Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar asking all political parties and their leaders to strictly adhere to the poll code.
The general election for 543 Lok Sabha seats will be held in seven phases from April 19, with counting to be held on June 4. Elections to State legislatures of Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Odisha and Sikkim will also be held in the same period
Voting will be held in 7 phases starting from April 19, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar said on Saturday.
In Phase 1, which will be held on April 19, the voting will be held in a total of 102 constituencies. The second phase of Lok Sabha polls will be held on April 26 which will see voting in 89 constituencies. The third phase of Lok Sabha elections will be held on May 7. A total of 94 constituencies will see voting in this phase
96 Lok Sabha seats will go for polling in Phase 4 on May 13. Phase 5 will see polling on 49 Lok Sabha seats with elections on May 20. The sixth phase will be held on May 25 which will see polling on 57 constituencies. The seventh and final phase of Lok Sabha elections will be held on June 1 which will witness polling on 57 constituencies.
A total of 96.8 crore voters will be eligible to cast their vote in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar said.