Mysuru: A day ahead of polling for the zilla and taluk panchayat elections , the Congress seemed to be placed comfortably in the Chief Minister’s hometown of Mysuru, with his intensive campaign of the last five days seeming to have struck a chord with the voters, who are now reluctant to see him lose face.
While there is a triangular fight here between the Congress, Janata Dal (Secular) and the Bharatiya Janata Party, the Congress MLAs, who represent four of the eight assembly constituencies, have been doing their bit to ensure the party wins.
The BJP, which has only one MLA from Mysuru Kodagu constituency and the JD(S),which has three, from HD Kote, KRNagar and Chamundeswari, seem to be outnumbered.
Voter sentiment seems to be in favour of the Congress in Chamarajnagar too. While the party’s four MLAs and one MP have been campaigning vigorously for it here, Chamarajnagar also has a big population of Nayaks, Kurubas, SC/STs, Uppars and Dalits, who are likely to vote for it. But in Mandya, the Congress may have to pay the price for internal bickering, although it has persuaded the rebels to withdraw. The Janata Dal (Secular) may have an edge here with four MLAs and one MP intensely campaigning for it. In Kodagu, the BJP seems to have an edge over its rivals. Money power is being used liberally in these polls, going by those in the know.
No political party is an exception , according to them. As much as Rs 25 to Rs 30 lakh is being splurged on seats reserved for SCs and STs in zilla panchayats, it is claimed.
While the amount allegedly ranges from Rs 30 to Rs 50 lakhs in constituencies with a large chunk of OBC voters, it soars to a crore for general category seats.
The police have booked as many as 381 cases including 69 cases under the Excise Act and 59 for violation of the model code of conduct in Mysuru district alone and also seized Rs 45,500 in cash here. Two men were arrested on Friday for allegedly trying to distribute Rs 33,000 among voters in Alanahalli police station limits.
