MANDYA: The newfound bonhomie between former chief minister Siddaramaiah and JD(S) patriarch D H Deve Gowda and also among the senior Congress and JD(S) leaders has failed to enthuse and unite the party workers at the ground level. Even as the stage is set for the Mandya bypoll, the camaraderie has not trickled down to the grassroots level.
What has worried the Congress leadership is that barring a few leaders including former minister M S Athmananda, Chandrashekar and DCC president C D Gangadhar, no others have shared the dais with JD(S) leaders during the campaign in Mandya where the Congress has left the seat for JD(S). This is because local Congress and JD(S) men have shared rivalries for decades and not just for 12 years like Siddaramaiah. The only solace is that a few Congress flags are put up at public meetings to show that JD(S)- Congress are jointly fighting to take on the BJP.
Discussing the political developments at a tea shop at Yeliyur Cross, Raje Gowda, a local, feels that Congress president Rahul Gandhi has failed to feel the pulse of the partymen and protect their interests which will further push Congress to the wall in old Mysuru region. "What was the need to sacrifice the party's interests in Mandya where Congress had won many elections in the past?" he questioned.
Swamy, a Congress supporter, says he has not decided whether to vote or not. "I may stay away from the polling booth but will not for BJP", he added.
Local Congress men are averse to the idea that the party should be working with JD(S) just because Siddaramaiah shared the dais with Deve Gowda or a couple of other leaders are taking part in the JD(S) poll rally. Though it is a foregone conclusion that JD(S) will win the bypoll with a comfortable majority due to the strong Vokkaliga base and seven sitting MLAs, the non-participation and non-cooperation of
Congress workers may force the leadership to rethink such ties in future.
While Congress MP D K Suresh is aggressively campaigning for Anitha Kumaraswamy in neighbouring Ramanagara assembly segment, former minister N Cheluvarayaswamy, P M Narendra Swamy, former MLA Ramesh Bandisidde Gowda, known to be staunch followers of Siddaramaiah, have not plunged into the poll campaign despite several attempts to drive home the message to toe party line and respect the decision of the high command.
"How can we work for JD(S) when our workers are attacked, harassed and humiliated in Srirangapatna knowing that we are major partners in coalition government?" asked Ravi, a supporter of Ramesh Bandisidde Gowda. He fears that Deve Gowda wants to finish local Congress leaders through Siddaramaiah who managed to win over rebel JD(S) MLAs and ensured that they got Congress tickets.
Taking advantage of these differences, the BJP leaders even raised slogans in favour of Cheluvarayaswamy and even openly appealed to them to support BJP candidate Dr Siddaramaiah.