Ramanagara may be next Hindutva lab; only creating awareness, says RSS

After only two constituencies (Bangalore Rural and Mandya) survived the saffron wave that swept the state in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the RSS and BJP have launched an aggressive campaign to make inroads in the Vokkaliga heartland of Ramanagara district.

Ramanagara comes under the Bangalore Rural Lok Sabha constituency.

While there are fears that the communal fault-lines that affected parts of Ramanagara district in the late 80s could be revisited, experts feel that the saffron brigade will face a tough task ahead.

Recently, the controversy over Jesus Christ statue at Kapala Betta and the RSS route march at Ramanagara city were seen as a move to consolidate the Hindu votebank, ahead of the next elections.

Speaking to DH, Congress leader C M Lingappa said breaking the influence of Congress and JD(S) - which are traditionally supported by local voters - was difficult. “They may have their own method to consolidate votes, but BJP and RSS won’t be successful,” he said.

Politically, the BJP gaining hold in Ramanagara will be significant as it will pose a challenge to Congress’ D K Shivakumar and H D Kumaraswamy of the JD(S), who contest from Assembly seats in the district.

The only way for BJP to ensure support in the region is by ascertaining whether Vokkaligas were behind the saffron party, senior journalist and analyst Jayaram Arakere said. “Until then, they have no chance in the region,” he said. Though the region has had a history of communal strife, it has remained peaceful since the last major case reported three decades ago in 1989, he noted.

According to BJP leader Ashwath Narayan, who contested on a BJP ticket from Bangalore Rural constituency in 2019, there wasn’t much to read into the recent developments such as the RSS route march. “RSS holds route marches at taluk level regularly. Last Sunday (February 9) it was just a route march of all taluk units.”

Dismissing allegations of RSS volunteers being brought from elsewhere, he said such charges were being levelled to divert attention from Congress’ appeasement politics, which the BJP is fighting against.

“People from the Scheduled Castes are encouraged to convert to Christianity by promising land,” he claimed.

Firebrand RSS leader Kalladka Prabhakar Bhat said the RSS route march was only to create awareness and was not political in nature “as there were no political leaders on the stage.” On right-wing organisations politicising issues in the region, he said nationalism was the political viewpoint of RSS and anything against it would be challenged.

On Congress’ charges, he accused the party leaders of dividing communities.

“But now, people are going away from them, due to their sins and anti-national activities.”