Karnataka Assembly Bypolls: BJP Setting Stage for Strong Political Battle

The by-elections, scheduled for November 23, will be held in Shiggaon, Sandur, and Channapatna—seats that fell vacant after the sitting MLAs were elected to Parliament earlier this year.

While BJP, Congress, and JD(S) had claimed victories in Shiggaon, Sandur, and Channapatna, respectively, in the 2023 assembly elections, the political landscape has shifted. This time, the BJP, in alliance with JD(S), is not only determined to retain its hold on Shiggaon and Channapatna but also aims to wrest Sandur from Congress—a seat that has traditionally been a Congress stronghold.

In the last few months, a wave of controversies has surfaced in Karnataka, giving the BJP ample ammunition to target the Congress government.

While Congress targeted the BJP with "40 percent government" allegations during the 2023 assembly elections, the BJP is now prepared to pay back in kind by highlighting the Congress government's decision to release the accused in the Hubballi police station attack case, as well as the Valmiki Corporation scam and the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) scam.

“These are three major black marks for the Congress in this by-election, each linked to one of the constituencies,” BJP Karnataka state general secretary P Rajeev told Deccan Chronicle.

“With what face will the Congress approach voters in these constituencies?” Rajeev questioned.

One of the BJP’s main points of attack is the Congress government's controversial decision to withdraw cases against those accused in the 2022 Hubballi police station attack. According to Rajeev, this decision is likely to have consequences for Congress in the Shiggaon constituency, situated near Hubballi, and falls within the Dharwad parliamentary segment. “The Congress will have to answer for this to the people of Shiggaon,” he said.

Similarly, the BJP is set to raise the Valmiki Corporation scam in Sandur of Ballari district, a Scheduled Tribe (ST) reserved constituency. Following the incident, Bellary Rural MLA B Nagendra was forced to resign as Sports and ST Welfare Minister. He was also arrested in connection to the case.

Congress’ perceived mishandling of the scandal and the allegations that the scam money was used for election in Ballari and also Telangana is likely to be used as a key weapon by the BJP. In Channapatna, the BJP is expected to highlight the MUDA scam, pointing fingers at Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.

“We will go to the election on the platform of nationalism and clean governance. The failures of the state government will be a major focus of our campaign,” Rajeev added.

None of the major parties have officially announced their candidates. However intense behind-the-scenes lobbying is underway. Aspiring candidates are making last-minute bids to secure their party’s ticket.

The voting is scheduled for November 13 and the results will be declared on November 23. The last date for filing nominations is October 25.