“I will not vote for you. I will vote for Janata Dal (Secular) only,” these were the words spoken by Halekesare gram panchayat’s Dalit member Mariswamy and Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's old friend during his election campaign in Chamundeshwari constituency.
During a roadshow in Hale Kesare village, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s convoy stopped to address the people gathered around.
After speaking to two of his old friends Veerabhadra and gram panchayat member Rajanna, the CM enquired about his other friend Mariswamy. Siddaramaiah said, “Mariswamy, raise your hand. Hey, Mariswami, come here. Why are you standing there? I had come to visit you in your house, do you remember?”
At this point, someone in the crowd pointed out that he had joined the JD(S), to which CM Siddaramaiah said, “Why are you siding with the BJP?”
“I am not with the BJP, I am with the JD(S),” an angry Mariswamy replied. Siddaramaiah reminds then Mariswamy that he too was with the JD(S) before, but is now with the Congress and asks him to come to the Congress.
Upon Mariswamy’s refusal, Siddaramaiah says, “Okay, don’t come, but vote for me. JD(S) and BJP are together, you know that, right?”
“No, I won’t vote for you. No matter what, I will vote for the JD(S) only. They made you the deputy CM but for the CM post look what you did. I should say a huge thank you to you,” Mariswamy is heard saying sarcastically.
An angry Siddaramaiah then asked Mariswamy to leave the place. “Why should I leave? This is my hometown. You are the outsider, you leave,” he responds, before walking away.
The Chamundeshwari seat is a coveted one as it can bring down Siddaramaiah. Internal surveys have predicted a loss for the CM if he contests from Chamundeshwari and Siddaramaiah has stepped up his campaigning in the region and is conducting roadshows to gather votes.
After the delimitation, Siddaramaiah’s vote base shifted to Varuna. Since 2008, Siddaramaiah has contested and won the Varuna seat twice. This time around, since his son Yathindra is contesting from Varuna, Siddaramaiah has chosen Chamundeshwari.