'Door-to-door campaign helped Shobha get huge margin'

The door-to-door campaign launched to convince voters on various developmental programmes implemented by Modi government helped Shobha Karandlaje win by a huge margin, BJP Udupi President Mattar Ratnakar Hegde said.

Hegde told DH on Friday that victory was expected due to the lack of interest in the opposition camp.

“Knowing well that the victory could swing any side, BJP had worked out strategies targeting grassroots-level campaign which proved to be a blessing in disguise. Voters were instilled with hopes on expecting more if Narendra Modi was made the prime minister again. Thus party workers should be credited for the huge victory margin,” he said.

Hegde added that the party’s weaknesses was also exploited to the hilt.

Shobha, who had polled 62.45% of the total vote share, said her victory was a befitting response to those who had opposed her candidature. Shobha, BJP’s lone woman MP from Karnataka, said she would now concentrate on the development programmes to be implemented in the constituency. Infrastructural projects, including national highway projects, need immediate attention, she said.

JD(S)-Congress coalition candidate Pramod Madhawaraj’s vote share was 32.08%.

JD(S), which had no base in the constituency, had succeeded in polling a record 3,69,317 votes in the election. In 2014 Lok Sabha elections, JD(S) candidate V Dhananjay Kumar had polled 14,895 votes and Bhoje Gowda had polled 72,080 votes in 2012 Lok Sabha elections.

Congress leaders attributed Pramod’s defeat to Modi wave and the confusion with JD(S) symbol. The absence of star campaigners also proved to be a major disadvantage to the coalition candidate.

Barring Shobha and Pramod, all other candidates, including P Parameshwar (15,947 votes), P Goutam (7,431), M K Dayananda (3,539), Comrade Vijayakumar (2,216), Shekhar Havanje (1,581), Suresh Kunder (3,488), Abdul Rahman (6,017), Amrith Shenoy (7,981), Maggalamakki Ganesha (3,526) and K C Prakash (35,430) lost their deposit (Rs 25,000) in the hustings.