The Fight For India's IT Hub

So we have it ­finally. No Deve Gowda from Bangalore North, no Narendra Modi from Bangalore South. Rarely have the city바카라�s three urban seats kindled such suspense and speculation ahead of a Lok Sabha election. Especially Bangalore South, where tradition and technology cohabitate. This seat, which was held by the late Ananth Kumar since 1996, is a BJP stronghold바카라�even Nandan Nilekani couldn바카라�t swing it for the Congress five years ago. A decade ago, India바카라�s budget airline pioneer Capt Gopinath too had tried his luck as an Independent and failed. However, with Kumar바카라�s passing in November, there바카라�s been a bit of a dilly-­dallying by the BJP. First, his wife Tejas­wini was a frontrunner for the seat. The party, even while it ann­ounced candidates for the bulk of Karnataka바카라�s 28 seats, kept everyone guessing about Bangalore South바카라�amid rum­ours that Modi would ­contest. Finally, with hours to go for nominations to close, it picked a young face, 28-year-old Tejasvi Surya (in pic) as candidate.

The Congress has zeroed in on AICC veteran B.K. Hariprasad, who had lost to Ananth Kumar 20 years ago. Hariprasad agrees the constituency has ­harboured an anti-­Congress sentiment since the Janata days. 바카라�But as of now, the BJP doesn바카라�t have much to show,바카라� Hari­prasad tells Outlook as he pads up for the contest. 바카라�Bangalore is now a city of opportunities and the BJP can바카라�t take the credit for all this.바카라� On the contrary, he claims, demonetisation hit Bangalore바카라�s local economy.

But all this might be ­bravado바카라�political analyst A. Narayana reckons the BJP바카라�s grip over Bangalore South is as strong as its hold over the coastal districts.

In Bangalore North, the ­suspense ended with a novel twist. Here, Union minister Sadananda Gowda, the sitting MP, was re-nominated by the BJP. And in the hard bargaining over seats between the Cong­ress and the JD(S), the Grand Old Party had apportioned Bang­­alore North to its partner.

Thus began the Deve Gowda rumours. But not only did the former PM settle for Tumkur instead, one day before the deadline the JD(S) too gave up its claim on the seat and ­han­ded it back to the Congress! Now, Kar­nataka minister ­Kris­hna Byre Gowda do the honours. As for Bangalore Central, it바카라�s a repeat of 2014바카라�sitting BJP MP P.C. Mohan will face the Congress바카라�s Rizwan Arshad once again. Yet, there바카라�s some stardust: actor Prakash Raj, a strident critic of the BJP, is in the fray as an Independent candidate.