JOIN USKrishnaraja Assembly: BJP may pitch media-savvy Malavika Avinash
The Krishnaraja Assembly constituency in Mysuru city is expected to get a new face for BJP as the party has indicated at fielding actor and media person Malavika Avinash in the 2018 Assembly elections.
The indication comes at a time when the crisis in the party between the factions led by State president B S Yeddyurappa and leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council K S Eshwarappa has reached its peak. The fourth executive committee meeting, ever since Yeddyurappa was announced state president last Ugadi, is also scheduled for May 6 and 7 in the city.
Caste divide
Even though leaders from various communities such as S Channaiah (1967- Independent), D Suryanarayana (1972 -Congress), H Gangadharan (1978 - Janata Party), N H Gangadhara (1983 - Congress), Vedanta Hemmige (1985 - Janata Party), K N Somasundaram (1989 - Congress), A Ramdas (1994, 1999 and 2008 - BJP) and M K Somasekhar (2004 - JD(S) and 2013 - Congress), have represented the constituency, there is a notion that it is favourable for a Brahmin candidate especially in the BJP. It is also a fact that the caste divides are becoming stronger like never before for a couple of decades now. Hence, with a sizeable population of the community people in the constituency, the notion seems to be true to some extent.
Presently however, the constituency is represented by M K Somasekhar who belongs to the Kuruba community. A case is pending against him in the DC’s court that he has procured a Scheduled Tribe certificate by claiming to be a Kaadu Kuruba so as to avail a few government benefits. The Congress may choose him again as its nominee as he is a close confidant of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah. He was also recently appointed as the Chairman of the Karnataka Silk Industries Corporation.
Contenders
In the last four elections, it has been a fight between Ramdas and Somasekhar. In the BJP, former minister S A Ramdas and District Cooperative Union H V Rajeev are aspiring for a ticket. Ramdas’ political career lost some glitter as his name was associated with a woman who is a former government employee.
Though a big name in the cooperative movement, Rajeev is yet to make his political debut. In the 2013 elections, it is believed that the dissidence of Rajeev and former MLC Go Madhusudhan contributed immensely to the victory of Somasekhar.
According to sources, the party high command does not want Ramdas due to the controversies surrounding him and it wants to distance itself from Rajeev as he had once crossed over to the KJP floated by Yeddyurappa.
A fresh face
The BJP high command wants to introduce a new face for the constituency and it sees Malavika as a fierce nationalist, an educated person who is popular and a sensible advocate who can defend the ideals, principles and policies of the party.
She also belongs to the majority community in the constituency. Her husband Avinash, who is a popular actor himself, is also a native of Mysuru.
However, if Malavika is made the BJP candidate, her path will not be a bed of roses. There are chances of Ramdas and Rajeev, both wealthy businessmen with their own network from the grassroots level up to the high command, teaming up to keep the ‘outsider’ at bay.
DH News Service