Karnataka - Mysore   

Samajwadi Party to keep off civic body polls

MYSORE: The Samajwadi Party has decided to stay away from the coming elections to urban local bodies in Mysore district including those to the Mysore City Corporation (MCC).

The party’s Mysore district president B. Karunakar told The Hindu that the party’s State committee had decided to opt out of the race for the urban local bodies in Mysore district and instead prepare for the mid-term elections to the State Assembly and the Lok Sabha which were “imminent”.

Although the Samajwadi Party had declared that it would contest in all the MCC wards, its sudden decision against contesting the polls had triggered a debate in the political circles. For, the Samajwadi Party that had won the bypoll to the MCC from ward no. 62 (Ittigetud area) in 2005, had identified candidates in 40 wards for the MCC polls.

With the Samajwadi Party having the potential to spilt votes of Muslim community, the Congress appears to be the apparent beneficiary of the Samajwadi Party’s decision to stay away from the polls.

“I don’t know who will benefit from our party’s decision not to contest,” Mr. Karunakar said. He said that the party had gathered support in not only Mysore City, but also different parts of the district.

Mr. Karunakar said the party would have stood a good chance of winning many seats in the MCC in view of the likely presence of rebels in the fray in majority of the wards.

With a large number of activists of the Congress, Janata Dal (Secular) and the BJP expected to be disappointed over the denial of ticket to them, Mr. Karunakar said there would have been a good chance for the Samajwadi Party to rope them in and field them for the MCC polls as its candidates.

Although the Samajwadi Party had not become active in Karnataka when previous polls to the MCC were held in 2001, the party had won the bypoll held in 2005 when its candidate R. Prabhakar won from ward no. 62.

But, Mr. Karunakar said the party had taken a decision against either contesting the polls to the urban local bodies in Mysore district or supporting any candidate or party.

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