Karnataka ByPoll: Will Congress Flip Shiggaon After 1994 Victory?

Campaigning for the Shiggaon assembly by-election reached its peak on Monday, just ahead of the 5:30 pm deadline for public canvassing. Amidst the back-and-forth between political leaders, the core issues affecting the public were largely sidelined during the electioneering. Now, it is up to the electorate to decide who will represent them when they vote on Wednesday.

The Congress, which last held the seat in 1994, has put significant effort into supporting its candidate, Yasir Ahmed Khan Pathan. Meanwhile, the BJP, which has controlled the seat since 2004, is confident in the victory of Bharat Bommai, the son of former CM Basavaraj Bommai. To make the contest more high-profile, CM Siddaramaiah campaigned for three days, while KPCC chief and Deputy CM DK Shivakumar, along with other party leaders, held several public meetings.

On the BJP side, prominent figures like former CM BS Yediyurappa, Leader of Opposition R Ashoka, and others rallied support. However, BJP leaders are concerned by the fact that Basavaraj Bommai trailed by 8,500 votes in the Shiggaon segment during the Lok Sabha elections, despite the party winning the seat by over 36,000 votes in the 2023 Assembly elections.

Congress, fielding a Muslim candidate, is hoping to secure the votes of minorities and Dalits, while the BJP is banking on support from the upper class, primarily Lingayats and other backward castes, with the exception of the Kurubas. The Waqf issue has given the BJP a strong platform to target Congress, but its impact on voter sentiment will only be clear when the results are announced on November 23.