As Former Coalition Partners JD(S)-Congress Spar Over Mysuru, BJP Walks Away With Mayoral Post

For the first time ever, Karnataka's cultural capital Mysuru has had a mayor from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

BJP's Sunanda Palanethra became the Mayor of the city corporation of Mysuru on Wednesday (25 August) as the JD(s)-Congress nexus came crumbling down after the JD(S) refrained from supporting its coalition partner and instead nominated a candidate of its own.

Palanetra, a relative of former chief minister and Lingayat strongman B S Yediyurappa, who said 'it was her last stint 'as she had been in politics for the last 25 years and contested elections five times, was 'elated' on winning. She had contested the mayoral polls last time too but lost it to Rukmini Madegowda.

This time she won 26 votes while the Congress candidate H M Shanthakumaran and the JD(S) candidate Ashwini Ananthu won 22 each. Palanethra's 26 were from 22 corporators, 2 MLAs, one Lok Sabha MP Pratap Simha and an independent corporator.

This is not just politically significant as the BJP has won the post for the first time in 38 years since the municipal body's upgradation to a corporation but also shocking for the Congress as the alliance was expected to continue ruling the city corporation. As reported by the Star of Mysore earlier, City Congress President R Murthy was quoted saying the Congres has appealed to the JD(S) to leave the Mayor post to the Congress for the remaining period of the present term.

The Congress-JD(s) alliance had managed to keep the BJP out of power despite it being the single largest party in the council.

The need to take on the Congress in the general elections and the news of some of its Mysuru leaders possibly jumping fence to the Congress is said to have broken this record coalition pact. JD(S) leader S R Mahesh was said to have met BJP's S T Somashekar a few days ago. Also, news of G T Devegowda's resignation from the party to join the Congress is said to have dented the possible alliance. He also refrained from voting along with MLC Sandesh Nagaraj, as reported.

The mayor post had fallen vacant after the sitting Mayor Rukmini Madegowda of the JD(S) was disqualified within three months of her term by the Karnataka High Court in May this year for concealing her source of income in her election affidavit, as reported.