In Dakshina Kannada district, BJP won 63 seats as against romping 108 of the Congress. If, during the last polls, the BJP ended the hegemony of the Congress in the MCC, this time the Congress avenged the same by snatching away Udupi CMC from the hands of BJP, putting an end to the four decade long rule of the BJP, winning 22 seats and leaving just 12 to the BJP. In the district the Congress bagged 49 while the BJP had to settle with 43. Even Puttur, which is said to be the forte of the BJP fell into the Congress hands with TMC victory.
Well, a major section of political pundits say that the Congress was destined to win the elections this time because the BJP had offered the victory to the Congress on a well decorated platter. If not this time then, the Congress could have never!
As far as the Mangalore City Corporation is concerned, many say that the BJP corporators did better job than their Congress counterparts but the BJP councilors probably paid the prize for the wrong doings of their top-notches in the state. The chaos, pandemonium and confusion at the State political front fuelled by the BJP invariably had to take toll on the cities like Mangalore.
‘Party is mightier than persons’, the BJP leaders across the state kept reciting this rhyme like kinder garten kids. However, KJP supremo B S Yeddyurappa should have understood the meaning of the sentence and even the BJP should have realized that all said that done, if not for Mr BSY, the BJP could have never come to power in the state. After attributing immense self- importance, both, the BJP and Mr Yeddyurappa, might be now thinking that treading the middle path could have been better.
BSY in particular should have learnt a lesson from the pages of history that many great leaders of the state had conceived parties in the past too and failed miserably despite the founders’ political image. The failure of the KJP was evident by the fact that even a winning candidate like Mariamma Thomas who had planted the flag of victory tiding over her BJP rebel image and as an independent candidate, tasted failure as KJP candidate. The KJP did not even manage to get single seat in undivided Dakshina Kannada district.
Think of the Congress, think of two adages- ‘United we stand, divided we fall’ and ‘too many cooks spoil the broth’. Proving these adages wrong was the Congress. Despite no unity among themselves and with more leaders than party workers, the Congress is in seventh heaven. If one has to analyse the Congress victory and define it in simple words, it was nothing but a cake walk. After all, one man’s loss is other’s gain. The BJP was being rebuked for all its ‘Karma’ and the Congress, which was nothing but laid back was sure of the victory. Hence like the cricket of the famous fable, the Congress did merry throughout the summer and the spring but luckily got bowl full of lavish feast in winter! Instead of meeting the voters, the leaders were busy holding press meets in the city to hog as much lime light as possible. If sources are to be believed, the BJP party workers did cover the grassroots and met voters in three rounds while the Congress failed to approach the voters even once. There were many speaking of the proxy party workers of the Congress who used to loiter on streets and simply collect their day’s wage from the leaders for making merry!
Home stay attack, church attack, rise in taxes, confusion with regard to Self Assessment tax, Comprehensive Development Plan and several other aspects in Dakshina Kannada and Rave party incident coupled with political inefficiency of the elected BJP leaders in Udupi brought the doomsday for the thriving BJP in twin districts. Apart from this, many say that the major reason for the BJP’s downfall in the twin districts has been the arrogance of the leaders. They say that while it is easier to meet and speak to Congress leaders, no matter how senior they are, meeting even a BJP Corporator was a difficult task for common man.
“Even Corportors used to behave as though people are their servants. All said and done the Congress leaders are more approachable,” said a voter on conditions of anonymity.
One more remarkable aspect of the MCC polls this year was the performance of the parties like JD(S), SDPI and CPI(M). Though JD(S) and CPI(M) had one seat each in the MCC, this time they have graduated by one more seat. While CPI (M) did not manage even a single victory outside MCC in DK district, it won two seats in Udupi district. The JD(S) did win one more seat in Bantwal TMC but has no representation in Udupi district. The SDPI hit to glory with their candidate Ayaz sending home Mayor of MCC Gulzar Banu. These underdogs are the ones the national parties have to watch out for.
With romping victory in the ULBs the morale of the Congress is really high. One has to wait and watch if the Congress will manage to seal the same kind of victory in Assembly polls or the electoral has something else in store.
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