On a vote hunt in her late hubby's pocket borough

Prasad's wife banks on his good work in Gundlupet

As she reached Maralapura village, about 10 km from Gundlupet town, villagers surrounded the Congress candidate Mohan Kumari (Geetha Mahadeva Prasad), raising slogans hailing her husband the late H S Mahadeva Prasad.

Women gave her a traditional welcome by performing aarati. She went straight to nearby Siddappaji temple and offered her obeisance to the deity. She, with her relative Roopa and half a dozen women Congress workers of the village, got into a makeshift goods autorickshaw and began the roadshow.

Clad in a white saree, 56-year-old Mohan Kumari, a political novice greeted the villagers with folded hands. Many women, especially elders, turned emotional.

"Mahadevanna (as the late Mahadeva Prasad is referred to) is no more. She (Mohan Kumari) had not come out of her house all these days. She would not have taken so much trouble if he was alive," octogenarian Shivamma said as tears rolled down her cheeks. Septuagenarian Maadamma's eyes filled with tears as she saw Mohan Kumari.

"Mahadevanna helped me get old-age pension. He used to take care of the entire village...I had not seen ammavaru (as Mohan Kumari is referred to out of respect) as these days. Today, I am seeing her in this state," she said wiping her tears.

As the roadshow passed through the bylanes of the village, many villagers offered her flowers, while others simply blessed her by raising their hands. "These people will never let me down. My husband was a gentleman politician. His good work will ensure a smooth sail for me in the election,” Mohan Kumari, who holds a doctoral degree, told this correspondent.

A native of Mysuru, Mohan Kumari studied BA at Maharani’s Arts College for Women. Almost 10 years after her marriage, she did her MA in Sociology from the Karnataka State Open University. She was awarded a doctoral degree by the University of Mysore in 2013. She is also a writer and a poet. This perhaps explains why she had kept herself off politics.

"Madam (Mohan Kumari) may be new to politics. But she is not alone. We are all working hard and will ensure her victory," P Mariswamy, a former member of Chamarajanagar Zilla Panchayat and a staunch follower of the late Mahadeva Prasad, said.