Former aide to take on GTD in Chamundeshwari

NT Correspondent

Mysuru: The JD(S) MLA from Chamundeshwari, GT Devegowda will be going up against his former aide Mavinahalli Siddegowda who will be contesting on a Congress ticket from the constituency.

Devegowda or GTD as he is called, had famously proved a giant killer by trouncing then chief minister Siddaramaiah by more than 36,000 votes in the seat in the 2018 Assembly elections. This time around, Congress is trying a different tactic by fielding a Vokkaliga candidate in Siddegowda who came over from the JD(S).

About a dozen candidates are said to have been sidelined in favour of Siddegowda, the former director of Mysuru Milk Union Limited (MYMUL) and one of GTD’s right hand men. Those marginalised include Vokkaliga leaders like Marigowda who is in the Siddaramaiah camp. Siddegowda had been closely observing GTD’s maneuvering from within the latter’s camp.

Devegowda was keen on joining the BJP and even leaned towards Congress a couple of months ago. He had been staying away from JD(S) party functions. Siddegowda felt that if the sitting MLA left the JD(S), he would be next in line to contest from Chamundeshwari on a JD(S) ticket.

However, this was not to be as former Prime Minister HD Devegowda intervened and convinced GTD to stay on. He even managed to get the party high command to give his son Harish Gowda a ticket from Hunsur segment in Mysuru district. All grouses forgotten, the MLA declared that he was in debt to the JD(S) national president.

It will be interesting to see what the Congress candidate will be able to accomplish in Chamundeshwari as he has some presence in Yelwal town and Jayapura village in Mysuru taluk. It is said that this seat will see more of a proxy war between GTD and Siddaramaiah as the latter handpicked Siddegowda to unseat the JD(S) strongman.