In Bellary, the election campaigns are mellow and the flamboyance is missing, reports Vicky Nanjappa
The Republic of Bellary, the mining capital of Karnataka, wears a forlorn look today.
Once a booming city enjoying the spoils of illegal mining, it is today a mere shadow of its glory days, after a Supreme Court order put an end to the spurious activities of local mining barons.
While the Bharatiya Janata Party has fielded Virupaksha Gouda, a candidate who has no connection to mining, the Congress has fielded Anil Lad, whose name figures in the damning report by the state Lokayukta on illegal mining.
Once upton a time, the Reddy brothers -- Janardhan, Somashekhar and Karunakar -- controlled Bellary completely and ensured that the BJP won there by hook or crook. They also exercised considerable influence on voters in neighbouring constutiencies such as Gadag, Koppal, Raichur and Haveri.
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