Bellary: The BJP national president Rajnath Singh campaigned for the party candidate B Sriramulu in Bellary on Thursday. Addressing a public meeting he said "If we come to power, we will make Bellary a steel capital of Karnataka". The response to this statement was quick. Congress MLA and Union Railways minister M Mallikarjuna Kharge's son Priyank Kharge hit back by tweeting. In his tweet he said "I think Mr. Rajnath Singh meant, 'STEAL' capital. BJP had already done that during their tenure in Karnataka".
Bellary is actually the BJP's Achilles heel. Both Bellary and the BJP gained notoriety during BJP's five years rule in Karnataka because of its dreaded illegal mining mafia headed by the Reddy brothers of Bellary, who helped the BJP to come to power in 2008.
Bellary in northern part of Karnataka is a mineral rich district. It has vast deposits of iron and manganese ores. A backward district, known for its terrible heat had been a Congress bastion till 2004.
It first hit national headlines in 1999 after the Congress president Sonia Gandhi contested and won against the BJP's Sushma Swaraj from Bellary.
This battle royale also gave birth to a new breed of politicians, the Reddy brothers and their trusted confidante B Sriramulu. Sriramulu is a tribal, he is from Valmiki community. Bellary and its surrounding districts have a large number of tribal votes. Reddys used Sriramulu to get these votes and he also served them with devotion.
Even though he is not facing any case in the mining scam, it is a well known fact that Sriramulu was a part and parcel of the mining operations in which Reddy brothers allegedly made over Rs.30, 000 crores.
After his mentor and former Karnataka minister G Janardhana Reddy went to jail in mid 2011, Sriramulu left the BJP and launched his own BSR Congress party to take on the BJP, which he called a betrayer.
His party bombed in polling booths and he returned to the BJP despite stiff opposition from his one-time-mentor Sushma Swaraj. The BJP is trying to retain Bellary by fielding Sriramulu.
Bellary became an ST reserved seat in 2009 and his younger sister J Shantha was elected to the Lok Sabha in 2009 on the BJP ticket. Sriramulu is now facing Justice N Y Hanumanthappa of the Congress who lost to his sister by mere 2000 votes in 2009. Justice Hanumanthappa was chief justice of Orissa High Court and was also an MP from neighbouring Chitradurga in 2004.
Bellary witnessed an unprecedented boom during 2006 - 2011 and money flowed like water on the streets of Bellary during this period. It resulted in a big real estate boom and creation of new jobs.
After the banning on mining and the jailing of Janardhana Reddy and his associates, the economy has completely crashed in the district rendering lakhs jobless.
Sriramulu is now promising the people that if the BJP comes to power the money will flow like water once again in the streets of Bellary. A large number of young voters, who once tasted money and the easy life, are backing him this time. Some of them even admit that the ban on mining has ruined their lives and even if it's illegal, they want the rampant mining back. The labourers who once earned their livelihood from mining are now jobless. They are also looking at Sriramulu with huge expectations.
But, the BJP is lacking the organizational support and muscle power this time. Three of the four MLAs of Sriramulu are in jail in mining related cases. His mentor Janardhana Reddy has been in jail for almost three years. However they have asked their local followers to work for him.
Bellary has a huge Lingayat votes. Their top leader B S Yeddyurappa has not campaigned in Bellary this time. The Lingayats are also divided over their choice. The Congress candidate Justice Hanumanthappa lacks the charisma of Sriramulu. He looks more like a judge than a politician. He is also facing a resource crunch. The Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi campaigned for him a week ago in Bellary. Attacking the BJP for fielding Sriramulu and allegedly looting the minerals of Bellary, Rahul Gandhi asked the voters to back the Congress this time.
He even promised them a manufacturing hub saying that what is made in China will be made in Bellary, if the Congress comes to power at the Centre. Like Rajnath Singh's promise, his promise too received a barrage of criticism.
The voters of Bellary are not revealing their choice this time. As a veteran politician says for the first time since 2004, Bellary is voting without any intimidation and fear.
In the Ore house of Bellary, everybody is discussing three things - Mining, Banning and Jailing.
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