A bittersweet end to the political legacy of HD Deve Gowda

JD(S) supremo H D Deve Gowda, who had banked heavily on his legacy of being a former prime minister, had lost the seat by a slender margin of 13,339 to his rival from BJP, GS Basavaraju.

As a battle which was pegged between the Vokkaligas and Lingayats (Basavaraju community), Tumkur had put an end to the active political career of 87-year-old Gowda as he had already decided to retire.

Accusations of failing to release water from Hemavathi reservoir in Hassan to Tumkur and also being an outsider from Hassan left Gowda on a slippery slope.

In accordance, to declare the candidature for Tumkur, the state president of BJP B S Yeddyurappa had prevailed over national president Amit Shah to give the ticket to his confidante G S Basavaraju.

Amit Shah had said, "Then it is even more easier for us to win. Yeddyurappaji, Siddaramaiah aapki madad karega, (Yeddyurappa, Congress and Kuruba strongman Siddaramaiah will help you.)"

"If Gowda lost, it is primarily because he tried to enter Tumkur by denying a ticket to our own. Muddahanumegowda was the ideal candidate, in terms of acceptance as a local and for both the Vokkaligas and Kuruba communities," said a Tumkur Congress worker.