All eyes are on the state’s political heavyweights ahead of the May 10 assembly elections in Karnataka. Among the most important personalities in the state, HD Kumaraswamy is often mentioned by name. Kumaraswamy, commonly known by his initials HDK, is a member of the JD(S) and is eager to return his party to power once again. We provide a detailed political profile of HD Kumaraswamy here.
The JD(S) leader and former prime minister HD Deve Gowda’s son is HDK. Former Holenarasipur MLA and minister HD Revanna is his brother. His son and wife are also politicians. HD Kumaraswamy was born on December 16, 1959, in the Hassan district’s Haradanahalli hamlet. After earning his BSc from National College in Jayanagar, Bengaluru, he started working in the film distribution industry. In 1986, he married Anitha Kumaraswamy.
After gaining money off of distributing Kannada movies, HDK made the decision to start his own production firm, which is how Channambika Films was born. Under this label, he made a lot of movies. He soon entered politics, following in his father’s footsteps. In the Lok Sabha elections of 1996, he made his political debut by running from the Bangalore Rural seat and winning.
In 1998, HDK attempted to run for the Lok Sabha from the Kanakapura district but was unsuccessful. In 1999, he re-ran from the then-Satanur Assembly Constituency but lost once again. He made his maiden attempt at becoming an MLA in 2004 when he stood for the Legislative Assembly from the Ramnagar Constituency.
Father Deve Gowda was not informed of HDK’s decision to create an alliance government with the BJP, and from 2006 to 2007, he was the first Chief Minister of Karnataka. In the 2018 Karnataka state elections, HDK represented the JD(S) as their candidate for Chief Minister.
He ran in this election from Channapatnam and Ramanagara. 38 seats were won by JDS in the elections. Later, he partnered with Congress to establish a government. On May 23, 2018, he took the oath of office as chief minister of Karnataka.
Due to HDK, the Janata Darshan program, launched by the late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, became more well-known. At first, many found it difficult to discuss their concerns with the CM. He gave the people of Karnataka a forum via Janata Darshan to express their grievances to those in authority. He then traveled to the hamlet personally since it was difficult for residents of rural regions to get to Bangalore to see the CM. By remaining in the community, he put the idea of visiting people in their homes into action.
In various controversies, HD Kumaraswamy’s name has surfaced. He was charged with assisting illicit mining operations in Karnataka. He was accused of issuing mining licenses to these companies in return for cash. The controversy and claims of Kumaraswamy’s participation in corruption erupted after the Lokayukta report’s publication. There was a claim that Kumaraswamy was complicit in a Bangalore land fraud in 2011. They are accused of obtaining public land intended for the underprivileged and selling it to a real estate company for a hefty sum. He was also charged with violating acquisition regulations by changing agricultural property into residential land.
