In Terdal assembly, will it be Umashree vs BS Yeddyurappa?

Hubballi: The Terdal assembly constituency in Bagalkot district has become a focal point of attention since talk of state BJP chief B.S. Yeddyurappa contesting the assembly polls from it began to gain ground.  The party’s move to hold a mammoth convention in the constituency on Friday has added fuel to speculation that he may choose to contest from the constituency, which is currently represented by  Kannada and Culture Minister, Umashree. 

BJP leaders, who  believe that the BJP will gain in strength in nearby Belagavi, Vijayapur and other districts if their CM candidate contests from Terdal,  have admitted that the convention is being organised to gauge the mood of the weavers as the community is a deciding factor in elections here. The weavers are dominant in Rabakavi, Terdal and Banahatti towns of Terdal , which is a new constituency formed after the  Guledagud constituency was removed during the delimitation process in 2008.

 BJP leaders from the weavers’ community are trying  to make sure over 30,000 people  attend the convention  in Banahatti,  famous for weaving  of traditional sarees. 

Ms Umashree, who  lost the 2008 elections from the constituency to the BJP, chose to stay on and nurture the constituents.  Her strategy paid off and she won the 2013 election from Terdal despite  BJP trying to brand her as  an outsider.

Now seemingly unfazed by rumours of Mr Yeddyurappa contesting from her constituency, the Minister has claimed she will retain the seat by a 50,000 margin based on the pro-poor schemes of the state government.

BJP leaders, however, believe the Lingayat factor could help Mr Yeddyurappa if he opts to contest from Terdal as many sub-castes of the weavers’ community follow Basavanna’s philosophy and Vedic ideology. They point out that people of Devang caste to which Ms Umashree belongs, are small in number among the weavers.