Bellary has been making headline since quite some time. The mining scam, which became quite an embarrassment for the Kumaraswamy government, emerged out of this district.
BJP member of legislative council Janardhan Reddy almost brought the BJP-JD-S government down when he alleged that Kumaraswamy -- the then chief minister -- was involved in the mining bribery scam.
While the issue cooled down after a period of time, Sriramulu who was a minister in the Kumaraswamy government kicked up a ruckus when it was time for the JD-S to honour their commitment and pass on power to the BJP.
He alleged that Kumaraswamy had attempted to murder him. The JD-S used this as a reason not to hand over power.
Once the poll process got underway, Bellary has constantly been in the news. It is a well known fact that leaders would spend their might in order to get their vote.
Over Rs 20 crore has been seized in various instances. It was said that the money was being used to woo the voters. There were also instances when crates of liquor and sarees supposed to be distributed to the voters have been seized.
A close look at the campaigning indicates that elections are not being fought on the development front. Everyone is trying to outsmart the other by using the money he has made through the mining business. Over the years, the mining lobby has replaced the liquor lobby, which used to control the political scenario in Karnataka.
Image: Officials take a record of sarees seized during election campaign.
Also see: 59.8 per cent turnout in first phase of Karnataka polls
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