the BJP and the Congress.
Kumaraswamy, according to sources close to him, is making slow progress after the operation. While the party claims he will return to political activities by January 15, doctors who are attending on him confirm that he will not be back before February 15.
Doctors have even advised him to keep himself off the election campaign in the interest of his health.
In contrast, both the BJP and Congress have almost completed the first leg of their campaign.
 “At present, the campaign scene in the State looks like a straight contest between the two parties, and the JD(S) has backed out. All these are taking a toll on the morale of local JD(S) leaders,” a former MLA noted.
Having earned a betrayal tag over the power transfer issue, party leaders, especially those aspiring to contest the polls, were heavily banking on Kumaraswamy to fight the elections. They hoped that former CM’s ‘charisma’ would fetch them votes.
“It will be really difficult for us in the absence of Kumaraswamy. It will be difficult to get the party workers, let alone the crowd. We hope he will be back soon,” another former MLA stated.
Not only second rung leaders, but the top leaders were depending on him too. Even aging party chief H D Deve Gowda had hoped his son would take care of the campaign, and that he could concentrate on the strategy.
“While Kumaraswamy would be sitting in Bangalore, doing the coordination job, Gowda would slug it out in the field. Kumaraswamy will attend only important rallies and make only speeches. The sympathy factor may work in favour of Kumaraswamy. Let us see...,” one of the former CM’s close associates said.
Reworked plans
The party, therefore, has reworked its campaign plans. Accordingly, party State President Merajuddin Patel, who is also a heart patient, and spokesperson Y S V Datta, who hitherto has been a behind-the-scenes man, have been given more responsibilities. While Gowda would be in charge of north Karnataka and old Mysore region (two crucial belts for the party), Merajuddin Patel and Datta will be in charge of Hyderabad Karnataka and coastal Karnataka.
Besides, the party has reversed its plans on kickstarting the campaign in the absence of Kumaraswamy. Instead of starting from north Karnataka, the party launched the campaign from Mangalore in the coastal region, as it is not a very significant belt for the party.
“The actual campaign begin on January 18 led by Gowda from Bidar. The Mangalore campaign was just a symbolic. We just wanted to show that the party campaign has begun,” sources explained.