A young outsider Vijayendra or a senior Revanasiddaiah: Who is better for Varuna?

In a shocking and equally surprising political development, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at the final moment held back BY Vijayendra's name, the son of BS Yeddyurappa, when he was supposed to file nomination papers from Varuna constituency on Monday. After this unexpected decision, disgruntled party workers surrounded BS Yeddyurappa and his eldest son BY Raghavendra in a Mysore hotel where the party meeting was underway.

BY Vijayendra tweeted, "I wholeheartedly stand by & support party's decision in all circumstances. I urge the party cadre to maintain peace & tranquility which is of foremost importance. I will continue to work towards bringing @BJP4Karnataka to power in the state under the leadership of Shri BS Yeddyurappa."

I wholeheartedly stand by & support party's decision in all circumstances. I urge the party cadre to maintain peace & tranquility which is of foremost importance. I will continue to work towards bringing @BJP4Karnataka to power in the state under the leadership of Shri @BSYBJP!

— Vijayendra Yeddyurappa (@BYVijayendra) April 23, 2018

According to reports, the party has chosen Zilla Panchayat member Sadananda against Dr. Yathindra. On the other hand, former IPS officer Revanasiddaiah's name is also doing rounds as a BJP candidate in the constituency. Varuna has become a prestigious constituency since CM Siddaramaiah's son Yathindra is a Congress candidate.

The retired IPS officer had joined the Congress in 2004 and contested from Chamundeshwari constituency, but lost against Siddaramaiah, who was then with the JD(S). In the 2008 election, Revannasiddaiah had contested from a BJP ticket against Siddaramaiah in Varuna and had lost by a margin of 18,837 votes. However, Revanasiddaiah had defected to Congress in 2013, had helped Siddaramaiah get support from the Lingayat community in Varuna. However, he is upset with Siddaramaiah for sidelining him and not consulting him while promoting Dr. Yathindra in Varuna.

Revannasiddaiah had contested two elections against Siddaramaiah, lost both and extended support to Siddaramaiah in the last assembly elections. So, will his stature and caste make him the right candidate in the constituency?

Senior journalist Mahadeva Prakash opined, "Dr. Yathindra will easily win Varuna if BJP fields Revanasiddaiah from Varuna."

He observed that Revanasiddaiah was not so active in the constituency after his defeat in elections and missed an opportunity to build a good rapport with people in the constituency. Though Vijayendra is an outsider to Varuna, the fight between a son of an incumbent CM and a former CM would have been a fierce contest.

Mahadeva Prakash explains, "People would have liked Vijayendra because he is a young man, a right candidate to take on Yathindra. But, the High Command has taken an excellent decision. Winnability apart, party's decision not to field a politician's son is a welcome step as already a few ministers sons have got the party ticket," said Mahadeva Prakash.

"If a common party worker contests, the onus will be on RSS cadres and the party to ensure his victory. Vijayendra should campaign for the candidate, this will improve the image of Yeddyurappa in the state," he added.