LS poll: Big bucks for Hassan, Mandya

Bengaluru: Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy is raining schemes worth crores on Hassan and Mandya  presumably to ensure a smooth take -off for his son and nephew from the constituencies in the coming Lok Sabha polls.

Both Mandya and Hassan seem to be enjoying the "Most Favoured Districts" (MFD) treatment going by the schemes announced. The Chief Minister has been visiting the two districts at least once a week to inaugurate one or  other programme, clearly preparing the ground for the debut of the third generation of the Gowda family in politics.

The Janata Dal (Secular) has tentatively decided to field Prajwal Revanna, son of PWD Minister, H.D. Revanna, in  Hassan and Nikhil Kumaraswamy, son of the Chief Minister, in Mandya. While Mr Kumaraswamy's wife, Anitha, has already reportedly started visiting temples to pray for her son's success in politics, he himself is laying the ground for it in other ways.

Just last week, Mr Kumaraswamy was in Hassan  to lay foundation stones for projects worth several thousand crores. And on Wednesday, he was in Mandya to launch of a number of programmes worth around  Rs 3,000 crore. Although Congress legislators from North Karnataka and Hyderabad Karnataka are upset at this generosity for the two districts, while their regions are ignored as always, they are keeping mum for the time being .

A senior JD(S) leader, however, defends Mr Kumaraswamy's special love for Mandya and Hassan districts, saying he is only doing for them what former Chief Minister,  Siddaramaiah did for Mysuru for the five years he was at the helm of affairs in the state.

But since being elected to the Assembly from Badami and his defeat in Chamundeshwari in Mysuru, Mr Siddaramaiah seems  to have lost interest in his home district and is instead making sure Bagalkot  gets its share of funds  by regularly shooting off letters to the Chief Minister, asking for them, say sources.