If it's Nilekani in B-South, Ananth may shift to Dharwad

The BJP is reportedly thinking of shifting its national general secretary HN Ananth Kumar from Bangalore South constituency to Dharwad in the forthcoming election to the Lok Sabha, in order to avoid an upset by the UIDAI chief Nandan Nilekani, in case the latter is fielded by the Congress from Bangalore South, as reports suggest.

Although Ananth Kumar has scoffed at Nilekani posing any threat to him in Bangalore South, the party does not want to take any chance, sources in BJP national leadership told dna. Dharwad is currently represented by state unit president Pralhad Joshi. Ananth Kumar is originally from Hubli.

“Nilekani is a highly successful entrepreneur, the pioneer in designing Aadhaar card and is the poster boy for India Inc, and the party leadership cannot afford a possible set-back to one of its national office-bearer,” they added.

Another stream of thought in the party feels that Nilekani poses no threat to Ananth Kumar and that the latter could win in Bangalore South easily.

They also feel that Nilekani’s name has been floated as a red herring, and that the possible Congress candidate would be SM Krishna, whose name would be sprung at the last minute.

“In case Ananth Kumar is persuaded to contest from Dharwad, Joshi will willingly make way for the national general secretary, who has been instrumental in Joshi’s political growth. It was due to Ananth’s efforts that Joshi was elevated to the post of state unit president,” a sources said.

In such a scenario, Joshi is likely to be compensated with greater responsibility in the party at state and national level.

Ananth, who born in Bangalore, pursued his school and college education in Hubli, and the party thinks that voters in Dharwad will support him as they have been backing the BJP since 1996. However, there are worries too.

The defeat of Pradeep Shettar, younger brother of former chief minister Jagadish Shettar, in the recent elections to the state council and the humiliation the party suffered in the assembly elections, are haunting the party’s leaders.

Moreover, even if BS Yeddyurappa will support the NDA as he has announced, it is clear that he will work for the defeat of Ananth Kumar wherever the latter may contest from, by urging Lingayats to vote against him.

That could be fatal to Ananth Kumar’s prospects. His vote share in Bangalore South, which jumped to 51% in the 1999 from 35.1% in his debut election in 1996, but came down to 48.3% in 2004 and to 48.2% in 2009.

Even in the last elections five years ago, Ananth Kumar got 4,37,953 votes against his nearest rival, Krishna Byre Gowda of the Congress getting 4,00,341, a margin of just over 37,000.

With the Congress in power in the state, and the wave in favour of the party still to abate, it could be touch and go for him in Bangalore South.