Hubbali: After a month-long high-decibel campaign for the May 10 Assembly polls in Karnataka, the political parties are now into a silent door-to-door campaigning to ensure that votes fall in their kitty.
Congress leader and former Chief Minister of Karnataka, Jagadish Shettar went to meet several of his old accomplices, relatives and family friends. He also paid a visit to the Lingayat mutts and also the local temples. His wife Shilpa Shettar and daughter-in-law, Sreya Angadi accompanied the leader.
Shettar, a six-term MLA from Hubbali on a BJP ticket, had joined Congress after he was denied a ticket. He had complained that he was humiliated by leaders like Dharmendra Pradhan, who as the election in-charge of Karnataka, wanted him to retire from active public life.
Shettar said that he is only 67 and has ten more years of politics left in him. He resigned from the BJP and joined Congress and is contesting from his traditional seat of Hubbali- Dharward centre. Pitted against BJP state general secretary, Mahesh Tengipkayi, Shettar is confident that he would win with a good majority.
Speaking to IANS on the penultimate day of campaign at his Hubbali residence, the former Chief Minister said, “The BJP is fighting the elections to defeat Jagadish Shettar whereas we are fighting for a win. This is retrogressive politics of the BJP and people of Hubbali would give a fitting reply. I am confident of a victory with a good margin.”
The BJP candidate Mahesh Tengipikayi also exuded confidence in his victory and had told IANS on Monday that the BJP would win with a huge margin in the traditional BJP bastion of Hubbali central.
The Congress candidate from the Gadag Assembly seat, H.K. Patil also was going around meeting people and acquaintances and visited a few temples and mosques in the area. H.K. Patil, the sitting MLA is fighting a tough battle with Anil Menasinakai of the BJP. While Patil had won the seat with a huge margin in 2013, in 2018 he had to contend with a margin of 1.800 votes.
Patil while speaking to IANS said, “During the 2018, I lost several votes due to the anti-incumbency against the Congress government but this time I will win with a margin of more than 25,000 votes.”
BJP’s Anil Menasinakai while speaking to IANS over telephone said, “In the last elections, I got very less time to campaign as my name was announced only at the last minute. This time there was ample time and I visited every area and I am sure to win with a good margin.”
In Haveri district, the BJP and Congress are in a neck-and-neck race and the candidates are moving around in groups for door-to-door campaigning.
