Battle for Karnataka: DK Suresh to contest against HDK's son Nikhil in Ramanagara?

JD(S) legislature party leader HD Kumaraswamy’s son Nikhil Kumaraswamy might face a difficult Assembly election debut because the Congress is planning to field Bangalore Rural MP DK Suresh against him in the Ramanagara segment.

Suresh is the lone Congress MP in Karnataka who braved the Modi wave in the 2019 Lok Sabha election. He also happens to be Karnataka Congress president DK Shivakumar’s younger brother.

If Suresh does contest against Nikhil, it will be a high-voltage fight in the Vokkaliga heartland.

“I can’t rule it out. The proposal is there. But I’m yet to discuss this with everyone,” Shivakumar said on making Suresh contest against Nikhil in Ramanagara.

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“There’s a message to me that he must contest. I haven’t talked to Suresh or party workers about it. It’ll be a major decision, but I’m still undecided. Certainly, there’s a proposal and local leaders have been mounting pressure on me. Even the party is telling me that [Suresh] must contest,” Shivakumar said.

The Ramanagara constituency is currently held by Kumaraswamy’s wife and Nikhil’s mother Anitha Kumaraswamy. In December last year, Anitha announced that she would vacate the seat so that Nikhil can contest. Ever since, Nikhil has been working in the constituency.

A contest against Suresh will be tricky for Nikhil, who had to taste defeat in his first election outing during the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. Nikhil was the JD(S) candidate in the high-voltage Mandya Lok Sabha election. He lost to BJP-backed independent candidate Sumalatha Ambareesh.

Ramanagara, known for its silk, is considered to be a Vokkaliga bastion where the JD(S) and Congress are arch-rivals.

In the 2018 Assembly election, Kumaraswamy contested from Channapatna and Ramanagara, winning both. Later, he gave up the Ramanagara seat and Anitha won the bypoll.

Speaking to reporters in Hassan, Kumaraswamy said anybody can contest from anywhere. “That’s how our democratic set up is. Who should contest where is up to their [Congress] decision,” he said.

According to sources, Shivakumar is miffed with the Gowda family for constantly attacking the Congress. Also, Shivakumar wants to groom his brother Suresh for state politics. “There’s a worry that Shivakumar might get bogged down by Income Tax and Enforcement Directorate cases that he has against him,” a source close to Shivakumar said.