Bangalore: The spectacular victory of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in Delhi seems to have rattled the ruling Congress and the opposition BJP in Bangalore city and rest of Karnataka. The IT city has three Lok Sabha seats and all three are currently held by the BJP.
The ruling Congress is trying to wrest all three from the saffron party this time. According to political experts BJP's five-time MP from Bangalore South Ananth Kumar is facing a huge anti-incumbency and many of his own party workers are also against him. Some say his arch rival BS Yeddyurappa might also sabotage his chances. The Congress is almost certain to field Aadhar chairman and Infosys co-founder Nandan Nilekani against him.
Two other BJP MPs from Bangalore city, PC Mohan from Bangalore Central and DB Chandre Gowda from Bangalore North are also facing an uphill task this time.
According to local AAP leaders Bangalore South is the most fertile ground for them. It has a large number of educated voters and is truly cosmopolitan in nature. They want to try their luck in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls from this prestigious seat.
Nandan Nilekani has a good reputation and a proven track record. Bangalore-born IITian Nilekani is a very well known face in the city and has a very clean image. It will be difficult for the AAP to ask voters not to vote for him.
They can target the Congress, not him. Some AAP members feel that Nilekani should have joined their party instead of going with the Congress. According to AAP leaders, their prime target is BJP's Ananth Kumar and they want him to be defeated at any cost.
Even though the AAP is yet to name its candidate from Bangalore South, the names of AAP national executive member Prithvi Reddy and Ashwin Mahesh are doing the rounds. Some of them are even hoping that former Lokayukta and a close associate of Anna Hazare Justice Santosh N Hegde will contest on the AAP ticket from Bangalore South.
But, Justice Hegde's health and differences with Kejriwal may not allow him to take the plunge. Justice Hegde has openly dismissed reports of him contesting in the Lok Sabha polls.
Both Congress and BJP are dismissing AAP as a Delhi based party with a Hindi name. They claim that it won't have any serious impact on their prospects in Bangalore and rest of Karnataka. But, some leaders caution their party that the AAP can't be underestimated in a state like Karnataka. They say that the AAP can dent the prospects of both Congress and BJP.
A senior leader of the Congress said, "The AAP has a huge appeal. Their strength is door to door campaign and simplicity, which we lack. In a hi-tech city like Bangalore, the social media also plays a big role. We can ignore AAP at our own peril."
A political analyst observes that thousands of AAP volunteers from Karnataka had worked for the party during Delhi elections. They now have a first hand experience of handling an election. It will come handy in the Lok Sabha polls.
The AAP leader Professor Yogendra Yadav had visited Bangalore a few days after the AAP victory in Delhi. Talking to media he had said, "We have numerous people, working in different fields who came and worked for us during the Delhi elections. So, we consider Karnataka special for us."
According to him, the AAP has also commissioned a survey to understand the problems of farmers and other voters in rural Karnataka. "We have not yet decided how many seats we have to contest and where," Yadav had said.
According to sources, after AAP's victory in Delhi, over 30,000 people from Karnataka have enrolled online and this was very significant. The AAP considers voters of Karnataka wise and hopes that they will vote differently.
The AAP also feels that the caste politics won't affect their prospects as it made no impact in Delhi. Will the entry of AAP make a three way contest between Congress, BJP and JDS, a four corner contest in some seats?
The AAP Karnataka unit says yes, it will be a four corner contest.
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