Karnataka Assembly Elections 2013: Congress to make a mark in reserved constituencies?

Zee Media Bureau

Bangalore: The results of the upcoming Karnataka Assembly elections on May 5 will reveal how the Congress will fare the 51 reserved constituencies of the state. The 2008 elections rang an alarm bell for the Congress party when the BJP won majority of seats in reserved constituencies - 22 out of 36 SC seats and 7 ST seats, as per a newspaper report. At that time, Mallikharjun M Kharge was the state party president and the party won a mere 80 seats in the 224 member legislative Assembly. Proving to be a tough contender for Bahujan Samajwadi Party (BSP) whose votes were restricted to 2.47 percent, Congress won 34.67 percent of the votes. The upcoming election results will also prove the mettle of the state unit president, G Parameshwara. The chances of being the chief minister will increase for the Dalit leader if the party fares well in the reserved constituencies. In 2008, the Congress focussed on the candidates from the right sect in the constituencies, as per reports. According to several state Congress leaders, similar problem is reportedly being faced by the party in the upcoming polls as well. A Congress leader cited an example of a right sect candidate being fielded in the left sect Mahadevapura constituency, the report states. The Congress has announced 177 candidates in its first list on April 5. Karnataka will vote on May 5 for 224 members of the 225-member assembly. One member is nominated. The results would be out May 8.