Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru (SP)
Bengaluru, May 11: The battle royal for supremacy in the state between BJP, Congress and JD(S) which reached the levels hitherto unheard of, ended on Thursday May 10. The political pundits as well as the voters are now keeping their fingers crossed as various surveys, calculations and predictions have confused them by their widely varying projections.
On the last day, chief minister, Siddaramaiah, took part in a road show at Hinkal in the outskirts of Mysuru. Hinakal is a part of Chamundeshwari constituency from where he is contesting this time. BJP's chief ministerial candidate, B S Yeddyurappa, took part in a rally at Badami where B Sriramulu is fighting against Siddaramaiah, the second constituency from where the chief minister is fighting the election. JD(S) state president, H D Kumaraswamy, took part in electioneering at Chamarajpet here.
Siddaramaiah, Yeddyurappa & Kumaraswamy
Stakes are high for all the three leaders as Siddaramaiah has declared this as his last election. Age is fast catching up with Yeddyurappa too, while Kumaraswamy, who turned emotional at being unable to fund the candidates fielded by the party, requested voters to vote for his party if they want him to live on JD(S), it is believed, will try to use the situation to its benefit if both BJP and Congress fail to get clear majority.
National president of Congress party, Rahul Gandhi, spearheaded the campaign for Congress by setting aside 17 days for the campaign here. Prime Minister, Narendra Modi addressed 24 rallies. The Congress banked on its past performance, while Siddaramaiah and other Congress leaders accused BJP leaders of getting involved with personal vilification. Yeddyuyrappa however said that development happens to be the main Mantra of his party.
BJP, which was a divided house last time, hopes to put up an impressive show and bag majority as its splinter groups, KJP and BSR Congress, have come back into its fold this time. The party also heavily banks on the image of its Prime Minister, Narendra Modi. The voters have not been giving a clear verdict with different surveys giving edge to different parties.