At a cinema in Mandya, the sugar bowl of southern Karnataka, the audience bursts into whistles when Nikhil Gowda delivers a line about a farmer바카라how he is the real innovator. A family entertainer with the usual commercial tropes, Seetharama Kalyana is the 29-year-old바카라s second Kannada film in the lead role. The buzz, however, is over whether Nikhil, son of Karnataka chief minister H.D. Kumaraswamy, will make his political debut in Mandya in this summer바카라s Lok Sabha elections.
Indications that the third generation of H.D. Deve Gowda바카라s family were being groomed for a political career have been there for a while. So, speculation about Nikhil is swirling in Mandya. There바카라s an equal amount of curiosity about cousin Prajwal Revanna debuting from neighbouring Hassan, the family stronghold.
Movies and politics go hand in hand in Mandya, locals say. Quite fittingly, therefore, there바카라s a bit of a 바카라filmy바카라 turn building up as coalition partners Janata Dal (Secular) and Congress get down to negotiating a seat-sharing pact. Mandya was the home base for popular film star-Congressman M.H. Ambareesh who died three months ago. Now there바카라s a call for his wife, Sumalatha, also a film star, to contest the seat her husband once held, potentially queering the pitch for the JD(S) because Ambareesh has a strong fan following.
Mandya, which lies in between Bangalore and Mysore, is a Vokkaliga bastion where the two parties have a long-running rivalry, like they do in other parts of the Old Mysore region. 바카라There are squabbles between the party workers here all the time,바카라 says a local journalist. Leave alone inter-party rivalry, there have been tussles within the Congress바카라s ranks in the past between workers loyal to Ambareesh and Congress social media head Divya Spandana, also a former actress, who had stood for elections here previously.
Since May, when the JD(S) swept all the seven assembly seats in the district, there바카라s been worry in the Congress ranks over ceding space to its rival-turned-ally. To be sure, the Congress did agree to a joint candidate바카라local JD(S) leader L.R. Shivaramegowda바카라in the November parliamentary bypolls but now it appears a there바카라s a hard bargain for the seat. 바카라We have to think about future elections too. If we give up our claim, they will take it as granted in three to four districts. We have to sustain our party,바카라 says a Congress leader. Besides, there바카라s concern that the BJP, which does not have much of a presence in these parts, could find more room for itself if there바카라s a straight fight. In the November bypolls in Mandya, the BJP managed about 2.4 lakh votes.
Neither partner in the coalition has officially commented on the details of seat-sharing, a tricky task because of undercurrents in each constituency바카라the JD(S), it is understood, wants to contest in at least 10 of the state바카라s 28 parliamentary seats.
A similar tussle is evident in Hassan, which party patriarch Deve Gowda represents. For some time now, there바카라s been talk that Prajwal Revanna, son of H.D. Revanna바카라he바카라s Kumaraswamy바카라s elder brother and currently state minister바카라will take over the seat from his grandfather. In fact, Gowda had hinted as much last year when Prajwal was apparently upset for being passed over for an assembly ticket from the party. 바카라We have no objection if Deve Gowda contests from Hassan, we will support him. But if he doesn바카라t wish to contest here, we would like a Congress candidate here,바카라 says Congressman A. Manju, who is from the district.
There바카라s no official word yet from the JD(S) which looks to party boss Deve Gowda to take the final call.
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- Speculation is swirling about Karnataka CM Kumaraswamy바카라s actor-son making his political debut from Mandya.
- There is also curiosity about Prajwal, Deve Gowda바카라s grandson from his other son, debuting from stronghold Hassan.
- Mandya would turn interesting if the Congress decides to field the late Ambareesh바카라s wife, given his popularity.
By Ajay Sukumaran in Bangalore
