Deve Gowda, Kumaraswamy prepare to take on Sumalatha after Yogi Adityanath visit

BENGALURU: The Janata Dal (Secular), which has always seen Mandya as its stronghold may be seeing some stiff competition from the BJP which is making a desperate bid to make inroads in the district as well as the Old Mysore region.

Independent MP from Mandya, Sumalatha Ambareesh, recently announced her support for the BJP. On Thursday, she even shared the stage and participated in a roadshow with one of BJP’s star campaigners, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.

Given the history of Mandya politics, JD(S) patriarch H D Deve Gowda and his son and former Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy are working hard to ensure the party’s victory in all the seven Assembly segments in the district. On the other hand, Sumalatha has vowed to ensure the defeat of JD(S) candidates and the BJP has deployed its full force in the Old Mysore region. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is also scheduled to hold rallies in the region on April 29 and 30.

Taking a dig at the JD(S), Sumalatha said, “Some people gets vote in Mandya, but no developments has been taken and yet they are dreaming of becoming Chief Minister”.  She also said, “JD(S) believes in dynastic politics”, while indirectly referring to former Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy. However, the latter has chosen not to hit back and has preferred to play it safe.

During the Lok Sabha election in 2019, Kumaraswamy had passed comments against Sumalatha Ambareesh which helped her gain sympathy of voters. Sumalatha could perhaps be utilising the opportunity to get back at him.

While there are sections of voters who are opposed to the JD(S)’ dynastic politics, Sumalatha may be trying to encash on those votes. Wary of this, Deve Gowda too has jumped into electioneering to support Kumarswamy. On the hand, Kumaraswamy is also campaigning aggressively in several segments despite his health issues. How much of a challenge the BJP can pose to the JD(S) in Mandya, for which it is a prestige issue, remains to be seen.