The JD(S) released their second list of 49 candidates for the Karnataka Assembly elections on May 10 on Friday.
By fielding H P Swaroop instead of JD(S) founder and former PM H D Deve Gowda’s daughter-in-law Bhavani Revanna, who had been adamant about running from the Hassan seat, the party has put an end to the intrigue surrounding that seat.
Bhavani Revanna, who had entered the race for the Hassan seat, remained steadfast until the very end despite repeated assurances from her brother-in-law and JD(S) leader H D Kumaraswamy that she would not be fielded and that a “loyal party worker” would be forced to run in her place.
Bhavani, a former Hassan zilla panchayat member, is the spouse of H D Revanna, the older brother of Kumaraswamy. Her husband, as well as her sons Suraj Revanna, an MLC, and Prajwal Revanna, a Member of the Lok Sabha from Hassan, also supported her.
The conflict among the Gowda family over the Hassan ticket had gotten so bad that Kumaraswamy claimed certain “Shakunis” were attempting to brainwash his brother Revanna by using the battle of Kurukshetra from the Mahabharata epic.
Introducing Swaroop as the Hassan candidate, Kumaraswamy remarked, “The name has been finalized with the consent of Revanna and Bhavani, and the blessings of H D Deve Gowda.” He was joined by his brother Revanna.
Hassan is Deve Gowda’s home district, and the party won six out of seven segments in the 2018 Assembly elections. The BJP’s Preetham Gowda won the Hassan Assembly seat, marking the first victory for the saffron party in the Vokkaliga-dominated area.
Current MLAs H D Revanna (Holenarasipura), K S Lingesh (Belur), H K Kumaraswamy (Sakleshpur), and C N Balakrishna (Shravanabelagola) are among those whose names are mentioned in the latest list.