Suresh C Angadi of BJP is Belgaum MP
12:42 PM Posted by ukmad
Suresh C Angadi of BJP is the Member of Parliament for Belgaum.
He defeated Amarsinh Patil of Congress by 118687 votes. He has won with a good margin which was not anticipated by many.
In 2004 he had won against Amarsinh Patil of INC by a margin of 84753 votes.
Belgaum votes for BJP- Angadi leads by 74000
10:34 AM Posted by ukmad
It seems my blogs exit poll was correct and my interpretation was a bit wrong. BJP’s Suresh Angadi is doing very well in fact the margin of votes will then be highest I guess.
Angadi all set to serve his second term- leads by 62898
10:00 AM Posted by ukmad
BJP’s Suresh Angadi has been leading from round 1 and he is all set to be MP of Belgaum again.
He is leading by 62898 votes.
GIT ready for counting
5:26 PM Posted by ukmad
The DC J Ravishankar, SP Sonia Narang and Corporation Commissioner S Patil visited GIT, the place where counting will take place on 16th and took a review of the arrangements made.
GIT is all set for the counting and the counting might get over by 1pm.
Photo: Prakash
BJP might win-but ground realty is different-exit poll
5:00 PM Posted by ukmad
An exit poll was conducted online by this website on the voting day. BJP’s Suresh Angadi has 67% votes, Amarsinh Patil 24%, A B Patil 5%, Bhavi Kasturi 1%, VIJAYKUMAR UPADYA 1% & ASHOK HANAJI 2%. To be frank I don’t agree by this exit poll. See the evidences in the recent poll that happened. The polling was quite subdued and the Marathi manoos this time voted in very small number and this is a big hit to BJP and the Minorities and others have voted on earlier lines which means Congress and JD S will gain in this circumstance. The sample size who voted in this exit poll were computer literate and mostly youngsters which cannot be taken for granted as the exit poll for the entire constituency.But to me and news pouring in of other exit polls is BJP will not do good in Mumbai Karnataka i.e. Belgaum Chikodi and Karwar. The difference of margin would be 15 to 20 thousand or even less. The notable factor as I have been saying on this blog it’s not easy for BJP to retain this seat. Even though this exit poll shoes you that BJP is in the lead by a good margin it could just be the opposite also. Politics is a funny game and you can’t predict the JANTA’s vote. Disclaimer: The results of the exit poll are indicative in nature and the exit poll taken was on a sample of 143 only, which by any means will not represent the whole constituency. The entire poll was voluntary and online which means people who had access to the Internet only participated in the exit poll. Whatever may be the result, but this was an earnest effort from my side to have an exit poll in Belgaum (I haven’t heard of exit poll in Belgaum till date done by local media). The margin of error here is Maximum, I did mistakes but this was first chance at this one, Next time it will be perfect. Now will this result hold good in real is to be seen & if it does give me a Thumbs up or a Thumbs down. Sample size is not correct as it is too small. All Exit polls take caste as a major consideration, I havent done that either. In the 143 how voted in the exit poll 97% were Males and only 3% females The age group who participated was as follows No dount this poll shows BJP leading, the thruth could be different so stay tuned.
Symbol of Maratha pride saffron flag make people see red
10:04 AM Posted by ukmad
The crux of the whole story is it wont be a cakewalk for Angadi this time as it was last time. I have also said the same thing on this blog. This election will be won based on Caste & language rather than on issues of development.
The month of May will not only see a new government at the Centre, but also the 'rightful owner' of the colour saffron in Belgaum.
One of the northernmost districts of Karnataka, Belgaum, has over two lakh Marathis. The Marathi population has been defiantly hoisting a saffron flag on the district municipal building since the 1950s.
The flag, they say, is a symbol of Maratha pride. Now the saffron colour and its symbolic connotations have become a major campaign issue. A fight is on between the Hindutva brigade and the Marathis over who 'owns' the colour.
Things turned awry on March 17 this year when the Marathis were not allowed to hoist the flag at the new municipal corporation building as a PIL had been filed in a local court against the practice. Matters became complicated when BJP MP Suresh Angadi decided to intervene. Swearing on Kannada pride, he fought with Marathi leaders and hoisted the flag.
This resulted in a clash between Angadi's men and Kannada Rakshana Vedike activists, who accused the BJP MP of being anti-Kannada for letting the Marathis usurp the saffron colour.
In the melee, it dawned on Angadi that Maratha pride was all very well, but it would scupper his chances with the rest of the populace, including the 4.7 lakh Kannada-speaking lingayats in the area who traditionally supported the BJP due to chief minister BS Yeddyurappa.
With opponents like Amar Singh Patil of the Congress and AB Patil of the Janata Dal (S), both lingyats, Angadi realised that the general elections would not be a cakewalk.
To make matters worse, the Akhil Bharatiya Veera Shaiva Mahasabha (ABVSM), which decides on lingayat support to candidates, has not given its blessings to any party. When DNA spoke to Angadi, he appeared upset at suggestions that he had taken a partisan stand on the flag issue. "The colour saffron stands for Hindu pride. Hindu warriors have fought under the saffron flag for centuries. What Varun Gandhi has done for Hindus in the north, I have done for Hindus in Belgaum," he said. When asked if that meant he was not interested in votes from Marathi-speaking residents of the district, he hastened to add, "Marathi and Kannada are like my two eyes. In Belgaum, one cannot see without both of them."
When AB Patil was asked to comment on the war over saffron ownership, he preferred to remain quiet. Saffron, it seems, has managed to make people in Belgaum see red.
Source: DNA
Campaigning ends tomorrow
5:01 PM Posted by ukmad
It’s almost here; the voting day just a couple of days ahead & the candidates and their party workers are making their final efforts to woo the voters.
Tomorrow is the last day for campaigning and all candidates are trying to reach that part of the constituency that they have not yet covered. It’s not only candidates but their others half’s also that are taking keen interest in the canvassing.
As the doom day comes closer now all the activities after tomorrow will be different and as it is said the night before voting day is very crucial and loads of money change hands (I haven’t seen this but just heard).
Now all depends on Thursday 23rd how many people come out and vote & once that is done then it’s almost a month long wait to know who our MP is? The counting this time is GIT I guess and the college has been closed since all the necessary arrangements have to be made. The college will be closed from 23 and sealed as all the EVM will be kept there.
These 15 odd days have been troublesome for the common man, the first month of the year normally businessmen need new bond papers and during these 15 days the State bank of Mysore the sole distributor of stamp papers has stopped it due to lack of staff as the staff is on election duty. The same prevails in some nationalized banks as well.
Even commuters have not been left behind as almost 300 buses of the NWKRTC have been put on election duty and another 200 more would be put on duty from Wednesday to Friday. Hence many bus routes have less number of busses plying which is causing hardships to the commuters. The police also are very busy with the ‘Bandobast’ for the elections and forces from Kerala have been called in to support the local police to ensure safe polling.
In all it’s a wait now for that moment in Democracy where each one should come out and vote.
Ghar mein Baithne se, Chillane se Kuch nahi Hoga, Bahar Aa ke Vote do.
58 years same issues and similar candidates- we need a change
4:43 PM Posted by ukmad
Vilas, a salesman in a cloth shop says “what difference will it make if BJP come or Congress. Nothing is cheap and surviving has become a hard task. He said I will vote for someone, but that someone is not decided and not thought of also.”
It is this time, when the politicians come and fall at your feet once in 5 years and now they will hear to you, but will they hear after they get elected is a question. All the parties make themselves appear as to they are the most people friendly and they are the only one who can develop the nation (all political parties think they can develop the nation but the NATION does not think so). Independents are free birds as they did not get any ticket from a party or they just defected from one promise that as no party could keep up their promises they should vote for them.
The voter is not new to all this but he will have to give a verdict in the coming week.
Issues since the last 58 years have been the same. We will provide food, water, employment, price rise, community welfare, corruption etc etc. So what did you do in the last 58 years if you still have to provide the people with basic amenities of food, water and employment? Two new additions to that list ‘Stability’ & ‘terrorism’ has been added to this.
The Hindu has mentioned this which is worth reading and to the context:
Political observers point out at six types of voters, irrespective of socio-political issues before them.
First, there are committed voters for every political party. It is because of this reason that a party, even with very little or poor prospects of getting elected also polls good number of votes. The second is loyalty to the leader belonging to his or her religion/caste. The third type of voter compares both candidate and party and tries to arrive at a fair judgment under the given circumstances. However, the strength of this category of voters is not much too radically influence the verdict.
The fourth type of voter is the one who waits for the candidate to lure him to the polling booth. This is one area where candidates see potential to exploit by way of distributing benefits, including money, liquor (or both) and gifts. The seizures of large sums of money, stocks of liquor and gift articles during election stand in evidence to the observation.
There are a large number of first-time voters — the fifth type — young and enthusiastic, eager to exercise their voting right.
In view of their young age, inadequate understanding about socio-cultural and political nature of the country and the nature of contemporary politics, every political party tries to exploit them emotionally by raking up issues such as terrorism and religious fundamentalism as such issues make greater and instant impact as against issues such as price rise, corruption and welfare of the poor which are equally important in the development and progress of the country.
The sixth type constitutes the section which goes by the trend or waive in favour of a party as he wants to draw satisfaction of having cast his vote to the “winner”. But, in the current election, this section of the voter appears to be the most confused as any wave, either in favour or against a party is yet to emerge?
Above all, the last type of voter appears to be sitting most comfortable in all elections. They belong to all sections of society, they seriously discuss current affairs, condemn corruption and falling standards of political life, eager to see change and so on but refrain from voting. They form 20 to 30 per cent of the voters.
You may fall into any category of voters but the worst part is we have no choice. In this election also there is a lack of choice says, Nitin who is a manager in a Co-op bank. He said we will be forced to vote for a party in Belgaum rather than seeing the performance of a candidate. If we don’t vote it’s our mistake but this election we don’t have an appropriate pick, he added.
Harshad, a businessman told this blog that this time it would be better to go on a holiday on voting day instead of voting for someone we don’t like.
In Belgaum this time caste & language will decide our MP, so all be geared in the next general elections you will have the same problems and promises and from similar persons.
Barack Obama said “I’ M ASKING YOU TO BELIEVE. Not just in my ability to bring about real change, I ‘M asking you to believe in yours”
Change we need.
Belgaum first ever MP was under Maharashtra State
4:34 PM Posted by ukmad
B N Datar was elected from Belgaum North and Shankargouda Veerangouda Patil from Belgaum South.
In 1956 after the states reorganization was done these 4 districts came under Mysore state and first elections were held in 1957 for Belgaum as a constituency.
Belgaum EVM will look like this on voting day
7:28 PM Posted by ukmad
Belgaum EVM will look like this on voting day
This is how the Electronic voting machine would look like on April 23. (Most probable order of candidates as per the ECI website.)
List of Contesting Candidates
State Code S10 State/UT Karnataka
PC No. 2 PC Name Belgaum
Have you decided which button to press? If not you still have time, think over.
BJP could get a shock: Belgaum may see a surprise
11:31 AM Posted by ukmad
Congress is playing the hit song ‘Jai Ho’ to catch the minds of the voters and BJP is playing the ‘Bhai ho’. The latest trend this time has been SMS and internet. The giant screen on the Nucleus mall is displaying ads of all the 3 main candidates in the fray.
The BJP is trying to woo the Marathi voter who is against Angadi for his U turn on the Safforn flag issue and BJP is trying to woo the Marathi Voters by playing Marathi songs like Garja Maharashtra Maza tunes changed with BJP words. The congress is not really doing this kind of campaigning.
The JD(s) on a smaller note has been organizing padyatras and meetings in different areas on small scale and meeting one to one. The candidates are having small meetings in different areas.
The BJP is in such a precarious situation right now and all this is thanks to its candidate Suresh Angadi who plunged into the Saffron flag issue of the corporation so that he will get support of the Marathi voters but this has boomeranged on him as the Kannada activists are still demanding and protesting against Anagdi’s candidature and also the fact the both the MES and KRV have openly asked people not to vote for Angadi.
In the last election the 2.25 lakh Marathi voters played a vital role in victory of Anagdi and this time if these votes don’t come BJP’s way a surprise is in store.
When this blog spoke to a group of Marathi voters, they said this time they have not yet decided what they will do. One person added that he might just skip voting only this time, as he felt he has no good choice. Kudachi’s support to Angadi was welcome wish for Angadi but it was not heartily welcomed by the BJP, sources say.
This is the best time to get some donations and sources say this is going on. The leaders are also making promises to solve the problems of the people but no one is mentioning a point- point to answer to a problem, it’s all in vague, “if we are elected we will solve your problems” [your means us or THEIRS has to be seen]
The JD(s) candidate A B Patil yesterday said that Angadi is out of the race and he was ahead of his opponents and his closet rival was Amarsinh Patil.
Still there is a week’s time for doing the last minute calculations of who will vote where and what has to be done.
On this very site the mock poll for voting the MP is showing a lead to the BJP, but as this is voted by non voters (who will not vote physically) spread across the world this in reality could be a different scenario. The Rural voters will be the chunk of the voting and as Belgaum has normally seen a voter turnout of about 60% the same can be expected this time also.
The young generation or the first time voters might even have their say. We all speak of equality etc but when it comes to election Language, Caste do play a role and that cannot be denied.
In short, this is could be close fight and winning percentages could be lower than last time. But to know who will be our MP we will have to wait till May 16, and before that, “WE ALL NEED TO VOTE”. Be it anyone we need to go out and VOTE and make our vote count. You don’t like a candidate vote against him instead of not Voting. Well many won’t agree to this but as per the provisions of the present law this is the best we can do.
So vote on April 23, don’t forget, all your holiday activities should start after you have voted. So the first thing in the morning at 7 am GO OUT AND VOTE. I WILL BE AT THE POLLING BOOTH AT 7 am to cast my vote; you know what even my vote could make the difference.
If Rabri Devi can why not Kasturi
4:23 PM Posted by ukmad
If Rabri Devi, who has studied only up to class four, could become Bihar CM, why can’t Kasturi function as an MP.
Spotting a poor candidate among the multitude of Crorepatis contesting the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections is no easy task. One among this rare lot is daily wage worker Kasturi who is contesting from the Belgaum parliamentary constituency.
Kasturi has been walking barefoot since she vowed four years ago not to wear footwear till a Kannada flag was hoisted atop Belgaum City Corporation. A resident of Ashray Colony in Belgaum, she has worked as a cook for seven years at the residence of a senior politician in Belgaum.
BHAVI KASTURI BASANAGOUDA
INDEPENDENT
View Affidavit
View Affidavit
She has 50,000 cash and her husband has precious metal worth Rs. 15342 nothing else. She has passed her 5th Std. from Desnur Ashram Tal: Bailhongal.
An ardent supporter of Kannada, Kasturi is being supported by various pro-Kannada organisations who have taken charge of her election campaign. “Hoisting a Kannada flag atop Belgaum City Corporation will be my first task if I am elected. The only objective of my life is to stop the continued atrocities of Marathi people on Kannadigas in Belgaum,” she says.
“The court may has ordered not to hoist any flags other than the tricolour on the government buildings, but my struggle will continue until the court allows the hoisting of the Kannada flag atop the corporation,” she asserts.
Her husband works as an agricultural labourer In the affidavit filed with the election commission, Kasturi said she had Rs 50,000 in cash and a 10 gram golden mangalsootra.
She has been involved in pro-Kannada movements since 1994 and was jailed four times during the pro-Kannada protests in Belgaum in the last few years.
Campaigning barefoot has not been easy. “I developed pain in my feet and had to be admitted to hospital twice,” she says
Several Kannada leaders like Arjun Hampiholi and Rajendra Desai are supporting her. Hundred Kannada workers in Belgaum contributed Rs 100 each to help her file her nomination papers. When asked whether a class four dropout would be able to work effectively as MP, her supporters said, “If Rabri Devi, who has studied only up to class four could become Bihar CM, why can’t Kasturi function as an MP?”
Merits and Demerits of Belgaum candidates
1:33 PM Posted by ukmad
Continuing with media coverage of the elections here is one more bit from ExpressBuzz.
I have concised the whole story for easy comparison.
| | A B Patil | Suresh Angadi | Amarsinh Patil |
| Merits | 1. Given a new life for JD(S), which was staring down the barrel in the district after defection of Balchandra Jarkiholi and Umesh Katti to BJP? 2. A B Patil who has worked as a minister in H D Deve Gowda’s cabinet is also eyeing the Lingayat and Muslim votes. 3. Since Lingayats constitute considerable chunk of electorate Patil can expect lots of Lingayat votes. | 1. From the ruling party and thus getting funds would become easier. Claims to having fulfilled all the assurances made in previous elections. 2. Aims to make Belgaum an important place in Karnataka. 3. Promises to get “several crores of rupees” to enable development. 4. He wields clout among the Lingayats (the constituency has 4,70,000 Lingayats) and that might fetch him their votes | 1. He will still get Muslim, OBC and Kuruba votes and it would be easy for him to win. 2. He is confident of getting Kuruba votes en masse. He says, minorities and Dalits are safe only under Congress rule. |
| Demerits | 1. Patil earlier tried to get Congress ticket and when he failed to get it, joined JD(S). That has made a dent in his credibility | 1. He was recently embroiled in a controversy over the hoisting of a saffron flag atop the newly-built Belgaum City Corporation office.
| 1. Ramesh Jarkiholi, the Congress MLA from Gokak, had strongly opposed the candidature. |
10 candidates in fray for Belgaum
10:19 AM Posted by ukmad
10 candidates are in the fray for the Belgaum constituency. 3 persons withdrew their nominations on the last day yesterday.
But the main fight would be a Triangular between Amrsinh, Angadi & A B Patil.
| Candidate Name | Party Affiliation |
1. | Amarsinh Vasantrao Patil | INC |
2. | Angadi Suresh Channabasappa | BJP |
3. | APPAYYAGOUDA BASAGOUDA PATIL | JD(S) |
4. | ASHOK PANDAPPA HANAJI | Independent |
5. | BHAVI KASTURI BASANAGOUDA | Independent |
6. | Mohan Hanamant Gadiwaddar | Independent |
7. | Patil Allappa Ramappa | Independent |
8. | Patil Ramangouda Siddangouda | BSP |
9. | RAMACHANDRA MAREPPA TORGAL (CHALAWADI) | Independent |
10. | VIJAYKUMAR JEENADATH UPADYA | Independent |
