Ballari: The money power of the Reddy brothers- Rs 500-1,000 per vote in Ballari and Rs 2,000 in Molakalmuru for example- allegedly played a pivotal role in the polls in about 25 assembly constituencies in and around Ballari district, other than caste and other issues.
This was apparent on the day before polling and on polling day. The ‘higher rate’ of Rs 2,000 per vote in Molakalmuru was because of the stiff fight between the close aide of the Reddy minelords and Ballari Lok Sabha member Mr B Sriramulu and BJP rebel candidate Mr S Thippeswamy, said sources. It has now become evident that in most of these constituencies, BJP candidates were able to forge ahead of other party candidates by managing a systematic network of money distribution.
Congress and JD(S) leaders immediately pointed fingers at former BJP minister and beleaguered minelord Gali Janardhan Reddy for the 'heavy flow' of money in this election. "Janardhan Reddy wants to show his might to the BJP high command and come back to power politics. Hence, he is funding BJP candidates in the region", said a BJP leader on the condition of anonymity.
Reddy's money power coupled with the Lingayat boost given by Mr B.S. Yeddyurappa and the clout of the Valmiki Nayaka community of Mr Sriramulu has indeed boosted the prospects of BJP candidates in at least 25 seats in the Central Karnataka and Hyderabad-Karnataka regions.
"Look at minelords Anand Singh and B. Nagendra, who both contested on the Congress ticket after quitting BJP. But, surprisingly, they could not match the BJP candidates in distribution of money among voters an might lose the elections because of this reason", said a Congress party worker adding that non-distribution of money was the key reason for lower turnout in some constituencies.
Political analysts say that the Congress has no charismatic leader like Mr Yeddyurappa and Mr Sriramulu to woo the Lingayats and Nayaka community in Ballari and the surrounding region and also lacks an election-funder like Mr Janardhan Reddy." The Congress inducted mining scam tainted Anand Singh and Nagendra. They did not do enough to fund Congress candidates, instead they created a negative opinion among people against the Congress party which came to power in the 2013 elections riding on the issue of illegal mining ", said a senior Congress leader.
The exit poll surveys predict a fair chance of the BJP winning 23 to 25 seats in H-K out of 40 seats and five seats out of 12 in Chitradurga-Davanagere districts.
