Former State Unit President of BSP B Gopal, who recently joined the Congress after being expelled from the BSP which he headed for more than two decades, is making strong bids to wrest the seat from the BJP candidate A Narayanaswamy.

Anekal can be considered as the strong bastion of the BJP. Because before Narayanaswamy got elected for consecutive three terms in 1998, 1999 and 2004, late Y Ramakrishna of the BJP represented the constituency for a long time. Now it is really a tough challenge for Gopal, who has a point to prove to BSP by registering a victory.

Both BSP candidate Jigani Shankar and the JD(S) K M Muniyappa are expected to give a tough fight to the  Congress as well as the BJP candidates. In addition, JD(U) candidate C Thopaiah, Lok Janashakti candidate Venkatswamy and an independent R M Annayyappa are in the fray.

Anekal taluk, like other taluks around Bangalore City, is experiencing rapid transformation. Besides industries, many resorts, hotels and entertainment parks are coming up in a big way. In a such constituency, while some major roads are in good condition, most of the roads connecting villages are in a bad shape. Similarly the socio-economic condition of the people, majority of whom are Dalits, has not changed over the years. Besides Dalits, Reddys, Vokkaligas and Christians constitute the dominant groups in the constituency.

In addition to the traditional the Congress votes, Gopal is trying to capture a big share of the BSP votes. Many voters, who earlier voted for BSP, are now said to be supporting Gopal.

The BJP candidate is being accused of having neglected the BJP-RSS cadre. As a result many hardcore Sangha Parivar activists are said to have remained away from the campaigning.