It's turning ugly in Nanjangud

Mysuru: With 24 hours to go before all campaigning ends on Friday, both the BJP and the Congress upped the ante, with Chief Minister Siddaramaiah racing to complete his public meeting in the centre of Nanjangud town before the BJP's top brass, the new entrant to the Congress' hitherto secure southern bastion, took to the stage at Vidyavardaka college, barely a few hundred metres away.  

Mr V. Srinivasprasad, the BJP's star candidate became emotional when he realised that he had drawn, some said, 10,000 people as opposed to the Congress' little over 3,000 on Thursday.  

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah however exuded confidence. As the visual media followed his every move with one channel saying he had refused to attend a road show because of the poor showing - strongly denied by the CM's camp -  the road shows in Nanjangud town and the public meeting saw him hit his stride.

“Mr B.S. Yeddyurappa is under the illusion that the BJP will win, but it is we who will win and with a margin of over 25,000 votes,” Mr Siddaramaiah said. Denying that the party was squandering the  taxpayer's money on the elections as the BJP had alleged, he asked, “How can this happen when there is an Election Commission? It is not our practice to hold elections by emptying the state treasury. We bank on the strength of the people and our party workers.”

While asserting that he wouldn’t speak against Mr Yeddyurappa, the Chief Minister regretted that BSY continued  to target him. “Getting desperate over losing the elections, he is now talking nonsense,” he added.