North Bangalore Lok Sabha Election 2024: BJP Hopes for Silver Jubilee as Congress Puts Up a Tough Fight

The Bangalore North Lok Sabha constituency is one of the 28 parliamentary constituencies in Karnataka which comprises the following eight legislative assembly segments — KR Pura (BJP), Byatarayanapura (Congress), Yeshwanthapura (BJP), Dasarahalli (BJP), Mahalakshmi Layout (BJP), Malleshwaram (BJP), Hebbal (Congress), and Pulakeshinagar (Congress). The current MP is BJP’s DV Sadananda Gowda while the top contenders for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls are Shobha Karandlaje (BJP) and Rajiv Gowda (Congress). The election for the constituency will be held in the second phase on April 26 and results will be declared on June 4.

Political Dynamics

• BJP Hopes for Silver Jubilee in North Bangalore: It would not be an overstatement to suggest that Bengaluru has become a BJP bastion of sorts, at least when it comes to Lok Sabha elections. In Bangalore South, the BJP has been on a winning streak since 1991. In Bangalore North, the saffron party has maintained its dominance since 2004, while in Bangalore Central, the party has been winning since 2009. In Bangalore North, the BJP has replaced incumbent MP Sadananda Gowda with a woman Vokkaliga face, Shobha Karandlaje. Her candidature from North Bangalore was initially viewed with scepticism by some BJP leaders and workers on ground. Sadananda Gowda also made some obvious statements indicating his displeasure. However, the BJP appears to have gotten its house in order since. The BJP cadre and workers are now actively backing Karandlaje and her campaign is seeing a positive response across the constituency.
• Karandlaje for the Win? Karandlaje is usually surrounded by women on the campaign trail, suggesting that this bloc of voters could side with the BJP on a much larger scale than anticipated. For the Congress, this would spell disaster and mean that its guarantee schemes and overtures towards women over the past several months are not translating into electoral success. For the BJP, winning Bangalore North once again will mean that the party will hold the seat for 25 years straight – an enormous feat for it in South India. The saffron party has a significant lead over the Congress in North Bangalore. While the Congress has been running a spirited campaign, the BJP is armed with the Modi factor. In Bengaluru at least, this is another Modi wave election. That might just be a microcosm of what is happening across Karnataka. Voters in North Bangalore seem to have made their mind to vote for Modi.
• BJP-JD(S) Tie-Up: The BJP-JD(S) alliance has further bolstered the saffron party’s prospects in North Bangalore, with a majority of the Vokkaliga votes heading its way. As much as 60–65 per cent of the youth vote from the constituency could be headed the BJP’s way, if inputs from the ground are to be believed. The BJP campaign here has been taking shots at the state government, which is run by the Congress. The BJP is highlighting the supposed failure of Congress’ guarantee schemes and how there is a lack of development. Additionally, Hindutva politics is playing a major role here. The BJP is also highlighting how the Congress candidate is now a known face or a peoples-person. The prevalent sentiment among people is that Bangalore North, and the capital city as a whole saw more development under the BJP than the Congress.
• Congress Puts Up Brave Fight: The Congress is putting up a solid fight against the BJP in North Bangalore. However, it may prove to be insufficient given the magnitude that the Modi wave has gathered in the constituency. The Congress has fielded Rajeev Gowda to take on the BJP’s Shobha Karandlaje. The problem with Gowda is that while he may be articulate and an intellectual political leader, the connect with ordinary citizens seems to be missing. He is being seen as a “hi-fi” leader who has been airdropped in the constituency. Rajeev Gowda’s biggest disadvantage is that he is not just contesting against Karandlaje, but PM Modi himself. The Congress has been alleging that Karnataka is receiving nothing from the Modi government. It is trying to rake the issue of supposed GST non-devolution, unavailability of drought relief and the alleged absence of any major central government schemes in the state. Why it is raising such issues remains unclear, given that the voters largely say that the Modi government’s schemes are helping them. Besides, the Congress is also raising the issue of unemployment.

Key Issues

• Guarantee Failure: Congress came to power with the help of five guarantees. However, according to on-ground reports, many in North Bangalore claim that they are yet to see the advantages of any of these.
• Candidate Accessibility: Despite being a local candidate, Congress’s Gowda is seemingly not accessible to the voters. This has disillusioned the voters in the area, despite voting the congress to power a 100 days ago.
• Traffic Congestion: The Hebbal main road and the neighbourhood close to the airport road are infamous for traffic congestion and deadly accidents. Hebbal main road is a major junction for vehicles commuting to and from the airport. Poor public transport connectivity and walkability are among the most important concerns in Hebbal. Walkers in KR Puram have complained about the lack of a foot-over bridge between KR Puram metro station and the railway stations to make crossing the road less risky.
• Water Issues: The situation is alarming as groundwater recharge rates significantly lag extraction rates. According to Central Groundwater Authority data for 2023, all six assessment units — Bangalore City, Anekal, Yelahanka, Bangalore-East, Bangalore-North and Bangalore-South — in urban Bengaluru are overexploited. According to reports, citizens have expressed disappointment in ensuring water availability and tankers to the people in gated societies. People have also raised the issue of tanker mafias who are gatekeeping tankers to certain areas at certain times. Moreover, people have also accused the government of its failure to ensure such issues do not arise.
• Garbage Dumping: Pulakeshinagar faces issues of poor sanitation and garbage dumping. It continues to remain a major concern in the region. Residents have complained about garbage dumping in Frazer Town and construction debris in Pulakeshinagar and Coles Road.
• Polluted Lakes: There have been reports of garbage and sewage entering the lake as well as increased levels of toxicity of the water. The toilets in the premises are also in poor condition. Recently, concerns have been raised over the construction of a footbridge at Sankey Tank, which is supposed to connect Sadashivnagar and Malleshwaram 18th cross. Conservationists and residents say there is no need for a bridge and that the lake ecology should not be disturbed. Twenty-six lakes in Byatarayanapura are supposed to be rejuvenated, but several lakes have been allegedly encroached or polluted by sewage. Residents of this constituency constantly face stormwater drain encroachments and poor waste management.
• Unplanned development: Exponential and unplanned growth has left many areas in North Bangalore with issues of poor sanitation, inadequate water supply, problems with drainage, housing issues, poor waste management, inadequate drinking water, lack of streetlights. Peenya Industrial Area, being one of the largest industrial areas in South-east Asia, has contributed significantly to the growth of Bengaluru. However, the area suffers from air and soil pollution, and contamination of water sources. Residents of Mahalakshmi layout face shortage of drinking water, flooding of low-lying areas and clogged drainage pipes. Traffic continues to be a concern as well.
• Neglecting Karnataka: The issue of funds from the Centre has been raised time and again, along with complaints that the GST revolution failed to make its mark in the state. People are also miffed about the absence or lack of Union government programmes or schemes in Bengaluru or the state as a whole, despite it being one of the biggest tax paying regions in the country.
• Unemployment: The Congress is raising the issue of unemployment time and again in Bangalore. It is attacking PM Modi’s promise to provide jobs as promised in the last elections. However, the youth voters are simply not interested in Congress’s addresses. They believe that PM Modi is helping the country grow in the correct direction and at a pace that has never been seen before. Therefore, even though the youth unemployment rate in Bangalore is 17.24 per cent, it is not going to play a big role in the upcoming elections.

Demographics

Total Voters: 2848402

Social Composition

• SC: 338,960 (11.9%)

• ST: 62,665 (2.2%)

Geographical Distribution

• Urban Voters: 2,623,378 (92.1%)

• Rural Voters: 225,024 (7.9%)

Religious Composition

• Hindu: 83.3%

• Muslim: 13.3%

• Christian: 2.5%

Infrastructure Development

Airport: The Kempegowda International Airport in Devanahalli that began operations in 2008 has been a catalyst for the growth of the region, as it has attracted a large number of investors, businesses, and homebuyers.

• Bengaluru Metro’s Blue Line (KR Pura – Yelahanka – KIA): It is likely to be ready by 2025-2026, two suburban rail corridors (KSR Bengaluru – Yelahanka – Devanahalli and Heelalige – Yelahanka- Rajanakunte) are expected to be completed by 2028.
• Multi-Modal Transportation hub: Hebbal is set to become Bengaluru’s multi-modal hub with three metro stations (Outer Ring Road- KIA, ORR West Metro (Hebbal to JP Nagar), and Sarjapur-Hebbal. In addition to this, Bengaluru Suburban Rail’s Byappanahalli -Yeshwantpur-Chikkabanavara (Mallige) corridor will have a station at Hebbal.
• Peripheral Ring Road: It is an eight-lane access-controlled expressway connecting Tumakuru Road and Hosur Road via Hessaraghatta Road, Doddaballapur Road, Ballari Road, Hennur Road, Old Madras Road, Hoskote Road, and Sarjapur Road.
• Bengaluru Satellite Town Ring Road (STRR, NH 948A): It is a four-six-lane, 288 km-long , access-controlled expressway linking satellite towns like Devanahalli, which is in progress.
• Tech and Corporate parks: Bengaluru-headquartered IT major Infosys, which has a sprawling campus in the city, has leased five lakh sq. ft of office space at Northgate, SAP Labs India has started constructing its second office in Devanahalli, Boeing will open its second largest campus also in Devanahalli, and Philips Innovation Campus is relocating its campus this year to Yelahanka. Moreover, Foxconn is also planning to start manufacturing iPhones at its Devanahalli plant. A total of 2027 major hubs will be built in North Bangalore in the next 3-4 years.
• KHIR City (Knowledge Health Innovation-Research City): The state government is also making an active and focused effort on the region. As per Karnataka Large and Medium Industries minister, the KHIR city will be built on 2,000 acres near the airport — to house a university, hospital, and research facilities to aid innovation.
• Bengaluru Aerospace Park: It is a specialised aerospace and aviation industry park, which is spread over an area of 950 acres and has become a hub for many global aerospace companies, including Airbus and Boeing, about 250 acres of the land will be earmarked for a special economic zone in the aerospace hub.
• Aerotropolis development: The Bengaluru International Airport Area Planning Authority (BIAAPA) region, currently employing around 35,000 people, is also coming up with an aerotropolis development (Airport City), with a high demand for satellite offices and residential units. According to Bangalore International Airport Ltd (BIAL), ‘Bengaluru Airport City’ will come up on 463 acres of land and is expected to be ready by 2025. It will have a concert area, retail, dining and entertainment village, business park and hotel.

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