In the meanwhile, the BJP suffered a further setback when important Lingayat figures including former chief minister Jagadish Shettar and former deputy chief minister Laxman Savadi left the party just before the polls. Shettar formerly served as the representative for the Hubli-Dharwad Central seat, which has a Lingayat population of 20% or thereabouts and has proven to be a strong support base for the saffron party.
After being given the position of Deputy Chief Minister for his part in the fall of the Congress-Janata Dal Secular coalition government in 2019, which opened the door for the BJP to win the state, Laxman Savadi has also proven to be a force to be reckoned with. Both leaders are now running for Congress.
Former chief minister B S Yediyurappa, who opted to leave electoral politics, started the exodus. Following that, other prominent Lingayat party figures also announced their resignation, adding to the unhappiness in the BJP.
During the last stage of the campaign, when Modi conducted a 26-km election-eve road show in Bengaluru, detractors called it an act of desperation while supporters hailed it a show of strength, there was a little return to Hindutva politics. In a last-ditch attempt, Modi used the recently released film “The Kerala Story,” which was shown on screens all throughout India, to talk directly about the danger of Islamization and the party’s popular slogan, “Love Jihad.”
But up until Friday, exit polls indicated a close race between the Congress and the BJP, with most pollsters favoring the Congress. While the BJP relies on a nuanced blend of caste, welfare, and communal discourse to win over voters in other states like Uttar Pradesh, its chances in Karnataka are dim given that its aggressive Hindutva campaign has fallen flat with the electorate.
