Independents may play spoilsport for BJP, Congress in Belagavi City Corporation polls
BELAGAVI: The stage is set for election to the 58-member civic body of Belagavi City Corporation scheduled to be held on September 3. At the end of a high-voltage public campaign involving many political heavyweights from different political parties, the candidates in fray and their supporters are frantically meeting the voters personally in an attempt to woo them in the last few hours before the polling begins at 7 am on September 3.
A large number of Independent candidates are expected to gain an upper-hand this time round even as all major parties calim to get the lion's share in the elections. The campaigns launched by several Independents for the past two weeks also has evoked a tremendous response in several wards.
Noted politician and former councillor Shivangouda Patil says, the Congress and BJP would certainly face the heat as they failed to take their rebel candidates into confidence. "Both the national parties should have chalked out their process of selection of candidates more effectively to avoid putting the prospects of their official candidates in the fray at risk. Many Independents/rebels will certainly jeopardise the chances of BJP and Congress candidates in many of the wards,'' he said.
Even as some sections in the noted political parties feel the caste equations could also play a crucial role in the elections, many voters of Belagavi rubbish such ideas while asserting that the corporation elections are fought only on local issues in every ward. "The people vote for candidates based on capabilities to work for the local area development. Such people will be greater than those who vote considering other factors,'' claims a resident of Darbar Galli, Salim Faniband.
Women candidates who are really capable of delivering on their own without the assistance of their husbands or relatives have better chances to win the election, voters feel. Both the BJP and Congress have fielded a large number of women candidates.
In the 58-member civic body of Belagavi City Corporation, the ruling faction is needed to win at least 30 seats. The MES which held the seat of power on most of the occasions ever since the Belagavi City Corporation came into existence stands a good chance this time given the response it got for its campaign this time. Many workers of MES are confident of bagging a major share of seats for having an alliance with Shivsena, another strong outfit with a massive support of Marathi people in Belagavi.
In the event of Independents gaining more than 10 to 15 seats, the political developments in the city corporation will take an interesting turn.
Meanwhile, the local administration has been making elaborate arrangements to conduct the local polls effectively. According to the Deputy Commandant of Home Guards, at least 300 Home Guards will be deployed for election duty in Belagavi city. Only the Home Guards who are fully vaccinated would be deployed for the job, he said.