Raghavendra wins battle of ex-CMs' sons

In the electoral battle between three sons of former chief ministers, BY Raghavendra of BJP, son of former chief minister B S Yeddyurappa, emerged victorious by defeating his nearest rival Madhu Bangarappa, son of former chief minister the late S Bangarappa with a margin of 52, 148 votes in the by-election to Shivamogga Lok Sabha constituency.

BJP obtained 5,43, 306 votes, while JD(S) was managed to get 4,91,158 votes. But JD(U)candidate Mahima Patel, son of former chief minister the late J H Patel, was able to get only 8,713 votes. Among the three, it was Raghavendra, who outscored the remaining two sons of former chief ministers in the fray and recreated history.

It may be mentioned here that B Y Raghavendra had defeated former chief minister S Bangarappa in Lok Sabha polls held in 2009 by a margin of 52, 893 votes in his maiden electoral battle. Bangarappa had obtained 4, 29, 890 votes on Congress ticket while Raghavendra had gained 4, 82, 783 votes.

Raghavendra has carried on his victory saga in the Lok Sabha polls by defeating S Bangarappa's son by almost the same margin. So, in this way, he has repeated the history in the Lok Sabha polls.

With this victory, BJP has not only retained Shivamogga seat but also conveyed a strong message to the coalition partners that it still maintains hold over the constituency that comprises eight assembly segments including Byndoor of Udupi district. Of the eight assembly segments-seven are represented by BJP and one by Congress. This turned out to be a major strength for the saffron party in the country. The strong network at the grass-root level also turned out to be boon for BJP.

Though JD(S) lost the by-election, it did put up a good performance against BJP, in its home district. According to the leaders of JD(S) and Congress, if not Madhu, it would have been cakewalk for BJP. Of the eight assembly segments, JD(S) was able to get more votes than BJP only in three-Sorab, Bhadravathi and Sagara. But in the remaining five assembly segments, Shivamogga Rural, Shivamogga Urban, Shikaripura, Thirthahalli, Byndoor, BJP was managed to get more votes than its rival. The lack of coordination between workers of JD(S) and Congress and lack of adequate time to chalk out political strategies proved a disadvantage for the coalition partners.