Elections 2014: Reddy brothers' clout to be tested in Bellary

Bangalore: Bellary is expected to test the popularity of the Siddaramaiah government in Karnataka. The iron ore-rich constituency had come under the BJP's control in 2004, thanks largely to the clout of mining baron Janardhan Reddy and his two brothers. Their close associate B Sriramulu is now in the fray from the reserved seat, but the Reddy brothers are no longer the force they used to be, and Janardhan himself is in jail.

Sriramulu, 42, returned to the BJP last month, more than two years after he parted ways with the party to float his own outfit, the BSR Congress. His re-induction was opposed by senior BJP leader Sushma Swaraj who, at one point of time, was considered close to the Bellary brothers, but who has of late made a conscious decision to distance herself from them.

The onus is now on Sriramulu to prove that he can still pull off a victory. NDTV caught up with him on the campaign trail in the Muslim-dominated Cowl Bazaar. "In Bellary, our Sriramulu, he has kept good relationship with the minorities," nodded Basha. "He is a good man. Whatever we say about him is not enough," added a woman from the area.

Congress president Sonia Gandhi had vanquished Mrs Swaraj in Bellary in 1999. But after the emergence of the Reddy brothers in the region, the seat came under the BJP's sway. The Congress wants the seat back. They have once again fielded N Y Hanumanthappa, former chief justice of Odisha, who had been defeated five years ago by Sriramulu's sister J Shantha by just 2,243 votes. "Because of the misdeeds committed by the BJP both at the Centre and here, people have lost faith in BJP," he told NDTV.

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The contest has turned triangular with the entry into the fray of the Janata Dal (Secular) candidate, Ravindra Kumar. "We will somehow make sure the JD(S) wins. The people want a change," he said.

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