MYSORE: Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy said on Friday that the outcome of the ensuing byelection from Chamundeshwari Assembly Constituency in Mysore will serve as a barometer to measure the popularity of the Janata Dal(S)-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) coalition government in the State.

Although he refused to treat the byelection as a "referendum", Mr. Kumaraswamy said the election results would reflect the rating given by the people for 10 months of coalition rule in Karnataka and the development work taken up by the Government during the period.

Mr. Kumaraswamy told presspersons here that the ruling coalition was prepared to take up the "challenge" thrown by the Congress, which had been ridiculing its rivals of lacking in candidates, who could take on the former Deputy Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in the byelection. "Janata Dal (S) candidate Shivabasappa, who will be supported by the BJP, will be an ideal candidate to fight the byelection," he said.

Responding to a question on the presence of the former MLA A.S. Guruswamy in the fray as a rebel candidate, Mr. Kumaraswamy hoped that the party leadership would be able to convince him to withdraw his nomination before November 20, the last date for withdrawal of nomination.

Mr. Kumaraswamy dismissed as "day-dreaming" the Congress's prophecy of a mid-term poll to the Legislative Assembly after the byelection. The coalition Government would complete its term, he said.

To a question, Mr. Kumaraswamy reiterated that the Janata Dal (S) was committed to handing over the post of Chief Minister to its coalition partner BJP as per the understanding arrived at before the coalition Government was formed.

"Let there be no doubt in the matter. We will hand over the post of Chief Minister to the BJP at the end of 20 months," Mr. Kumaraswamy said.

Cautioning the Congress against misinterpreting the coalition's decision to field a common candidate as "weakness", Mr Kumaraswamy said the decision was in keeping with the spirit of the coalition arrangement.

"We can't be seen as being friends in Vidhana Soudha and foes in the electoral arena," he said.

The decision to field a common candidate came about because of the "magnanimity" of the BJP, he said.

The Chief Minister said fielding a joint candidate would enhance the "mutual trust" among the coalition partners. Deputy Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa expressed optimism of the "Karnataka Development Front (KDF)" candidate's victory. "The BJP will jointly campaign with the JD(S) to ensure the victory of the KDF candidate," he said.

Mr. Yediyurappa predicted that Mr. Siddaramaiah would be forced to build a new party after the elections. "For, he will not remain in the Congress after the elections," Mr. Yediyurappa added.

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