HUBBALLI: With the exit of senior leader Jagadish Shettar from BJP, the election to the Hubballi-Dharwad Central Assembly segment has turned into a prestige battle for the saffron party. It is equally a question of existence for Shettar, as he has been representing the constituency since 1994. While BJP completely relies on its organisational strength, he hopes to conquer the constituency for the seventh consecutive time as the Congress candidate.
The constituency, with the disrepute of producing two short-term chief ministers -- SR Bommi and Shettar, has been eluding the Grand Old Party for the last three decades. The last time it won from here was in 1989, when caretaker chief minister Bommai was defeated by Gopinath Sandra. As the political dynamics changed, against the backdrop of the Idgah movement, BJP became stronger and kept winning the polls successively.
Another interesting fact of the constituency seat is that since 1957, it has been represented by only four people. In the first three hustings, Congress leader MR Patil got elected, thereafter Sandra won twice (1972 and 1989), Bommai as a Janata Party candidate romped home thrice (1978, 1983, and 1985) and Shettar won it six times. The way Shettar has held his sway over voters, it may not be a cakewalk for BJP to ensure the victory of the fifth candidate from here. Till Shettar was with BJP, nobody had thought that Congress had a chance here. That was because the party never had a formidable candidate to fight the mighty organisational strength of the saffron party and Shettar’s political outreach to the voters.
Shettar used to have a secret understanding with Congress leaders to ensure an easy victory and it was openly admitted by him recently. Such an understanding could play out in his favour this time too, now that he is the Congress candidate. On the other hand, BJP candidate Mahesh Tenginakai has to go a long way in matching Shettar’s stature in both political and public life. Of course, Tenginakai is an organisational man and is projected as the blue-eyed boy of national general secretary (organisation) BL Santosh. But that is unlikely to make an impact on the ground, as all local officer-bearers and elected representatives from BJP are Shettar’s men and women. It will not be easy for them to break their bond with their leader.
Though a majority of voters here disapprove of Shettar’s desertion of BJP, nobody speaks ill of him.
As he is the common man’s leader, the people have a good opinion of him, though they criticise him for not doing enough to develop Hubballi-Dharwad. The results on May 13 will reveal how these sentiments will play out.
Of course, BJP’s top leaders say Shettar’s exit will have the least impact on the party’s winning prospects, but Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s stay in the city and holding a series of meetings reveals how nervous the party is. Tengainkai, however, emphasised on the party’s formidable organisational structure and a strong army of foot soldiers.