Daijiworld Media Network – Udupi (SP)

Udupi, Jan 5: It is common knowledge by now that both district Congress president, Gopal Poojary, and JDS district president, Deviprasad Shetty, have tendered their resignations from their respective posts, owning moral responsibility, immediately after it became clear that the BJP has convincingly humbled them in the zilla and taluk panchayat elections in the district.

While the JDS does not have a firm footing in the district, the setback suffered by the Congress party has come as a rude shock. The district Congress had recently been revamped, and Poojary had taken over as district president just three months ago. He was yet to take over charge of the unit in a grand function, which was proposed to be organized after the elections. It is to be seen whether the leadership of these two parties will accept the resignations or convince them to continue in their respective posts.

Gopal Poojary, who hails from Byndoor, has proved his mettle and leadership qualities time and again, in various posts including that of Byndoor MLA. He has been identified as a no-nonsense Congressman with high values. The fact that Kundapur taluk, his home town, where the Congress has a firm footing, was defeated has come as a shocker for the district Congress president. The party has lost its hold over Udupi zilla panchayat because of the poor showing in Kundapur taluk. In Byndoor assembly constituency, the BJP got four seats as against one it was holding last time.  In Kundapur constituency, the BJP, which had no representation in the zilla panchayat, has got five seats. Moreover, Kundapur taluk panchayat also has been bagged by the BJP for the first time. Many political pundits analyse that the Congress had to bite the dust in the election, because of the fact that a number of insiders worked against the party candidates in the election.

It may be recalled that M A Gafoor, district Congress president for about a decade, was replaced with Gopal Poojary recently, and it was hoped that the party’s sagging fortunes will be revived with the infusion of fresh blood in the organisational set up. There are rumours that Gopal Poojary was not given a free hand by the party leadership in issues like choosing the office bearers, selection of party candidates, and in implementing his own plans for building the party from the grass root level. There are also many who believe that Poojary knew beforehand that the party will taste defeat, and that is exactly why he declared that he would resign if the party does not do well in the elections, a few days before the elections were to be held.

However, Poojary has attributed the poor showing of the party to the misuse of administrative machinery and money power by the BJP, as well as distribution of liquor by that party. He also said that because of changed reservation criteria, several of the eminent candidates of his party could not be fielded in this election.