After exodus, HD Kumaraswamy on whirlwind tour of North Karnataka

Hubballi: Seeing the sudden exodus of his party workers and MLAs from North Karnataka to the Congress and BJP of late, state JD(S) chief,  H D Kumaraswamy has gone on a whirlwind tour of the region to revive the party’s prospects here.

He is  wooing farmers as well by promising loan waivers and accusing the state government of failing to take  drought relief measures and stop their suicides. But breaching the Congress and BJP fortress in the region will be a challenging task for the JD(S) leader as the  desertion of five of its  legislators from North Karnataka  has left a political vacuum in the party here. Party workers too seem lacking in confidence with their leaders  focusing on the Vokkaliga belt of old Mysuru.

The JD(S) had managed to win six seats from the region in the last assembly poll,  but is now left with only one of them, Navalgund MLA, N H Konaraddy as all the other five have joined either the Congress or BJP.  They were clearly disgruntled by the lack of attention North Karnataka has received from the party. Although the JD(S) rented a bungalow in Hubballi six months ago for Mr Kumaraswamy , who  promised to stay here for a short period every month to strengthen the party in North Karnataka, he failed to keep his word. He instead stayed away from the region on several grounds, including his health, affecting the morale of party workers.

Also, with JD(S) candidates here always being hard up for funds for campaigning in elections, some party workers felt it was time to move on to other parties which would take care of their interests better . A beleaguered JD(S) is now hoping disgruntled leaders of the Congress and BJP will join it and give it a fighting chance in the region.