With under 2% votes, fringe parties fail to leave a mark in Karnataka election
TNN | May 17, 2023, 06.02 PM IST
BENGALURU: The 2023 assembly elections have once again proved that parties originating from other states and those floated by individuals hardly appeal to Karnataka voters, with JD(S) being the only exception.
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), Karnataka Rajya Pragati Paksha (KRPP), Bahujan Samaj Party and Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI), which tried to make inroads in the state's political map, have miserably failed to leave a distinct mark. The fact that all these parties together polled less than 2% of the total votes is indicative of the severe rejection they received from the people.
Among these parties, the poor showing of AAP has been glaring, given the hard work it has put in for the past year and its aggressive campaign across the state. The party has a dismal 0.58% vote share (over 2.3 lakh votes), with many of its candidates losing deposits. "It is mainly because people made up their minds to throw BJP out of office. So they voted for Congress en masse to avoid a split in votes. Otherwise, we would have got at least 5,000 to 10,000 votes in each segment," said Jagadish Sadam, AAP media in-charge.
AIMIM and SDPI, which had entered the fray eyeing Muslim votes, also failed miserably as they could get only under one lakh votes put together. Functionaries of these parties attribute the poor showing to Muslims backing Congress. BSP and Samajwadi Party are no better in terms of their vote share. However, Maharashtra-based Nationalist Congress Party's candidate Uttam Patil gave a tough fight to BJP's Shashikala Jolle in Nippani, the only seat it contested. He polled over 66,000 votes.
Newly formed political outfit KRPP, led by former minister and mining baron Gali Janardhan Reddy, did far better than other fringe parties. Not only did its founder win from Gangavati, but his wife, Aruna Lakshmi, came second in Bellary City constituency. She got over 48,000 votes. In Sandur, too, the party polled over 30,000 votes and over 10,000 in another three to four seats.
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), Karnataka Rajya Pragati Paksha (KRPP), Bahujan Samaj Party and Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI), which tried to make inroads in the state's political map, have miserably failed to leave a distinct mark. The fact that all these parties together polled less than 2% of the total votes is indicative of the severe rejection they received from the people.
Among these parties, the poor showing of AAP has been glaring, given the hard work it has put in for the past year and its aggressive campaign across the state. The party has a dismal 0.58% vote share (over 2.3 lakh votes), with many of its candidates losing deposits. "It is mainly because people made up their minds to throw BJP out of office. So they voted for Congress en masse to avoid a split in votes. Otherwise, we would have got at least 5,000 to 10,000 votes in each segment," said Jagadish Sadam, AAP media in-charge.
AIMIM and SDPI, which had entered the fray eyeing Muslim votes, also failed miserably as they could get only under one lakh votes put together. Functionaries of these parties attribute the poor showing to Muslims backing Congress. BSP and Samajwadi Party are no better in terms of their vote share. However, Maharashtra-based Nationalist Congress Party's candidate Uttam Patil gave a tough fight to BJP's Shashikala Jolle in Nippani, the only seat it contested. He polled over 66,000 votes.
Newly formed political outfit KRPP, led by former minister and mining baron Gali Janardhan Reddy, did far better than other fringe parties. Not only did its founder win from Gangavati, but his wife, Aruna Lakshmi, came second in Bellary City constituency. She got over 48,000 votes. In Sandur, too, the party polled over 30,000 votes and over 10,000 in another three to four seats.