The security breach at the Lok Sabha in the winter of 2023 is strangely linked to the BJP picking the scion of the erstwhile Mysore royal family, Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar, to contest the summer elections.
The 32-year-old alumnus of the University of Massachusetts, who holds a degree in economics and English literature, was a surprise pick by the BJP when incumbent MP Pratap Simmha seemed well settled for a third attempt.
The 47-year-old former journalist and BJP hardliner had even made a few additions and subtractions in his name from Prathap Simha to Pratap Simmha after numerological advice he had sought to improve his chances of getting a ticket and winning a hat-trick.
The name change, strangely, brought him no gains as he fell out of favour after two of the youths, who breached the Lok Sabha security from the visitor’s gallery on December 13, 2023, had passes issued by Simmha, or rather his office. It didn’t matter for the party that he had won by 1,38,647 votes in 2019.
No amount of explaining worked with the BJP bosses, who had certainly weighed the risk of fielding Simmha and giving Congress a handle to whip them.
By picking Yaduveer, the BJP was banking on his image as a member of the Wadiyar family. He is the great-grandson of Jayachamarajendra Wadiyar, the 25th and the last ruling maharaja of Mysore (renamed Mysuru), and nephew of the last scion of the erstwhile royal family of Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Wadiyar.
Pramoda Devi Wadiyar, the widow of Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Wadiyar, had adopted Yaduveer to continue the line of succession since the couple were childless.
He is the first Wadiyar to contest an election after his grand-uncle Srikantadatta, a four-time Mysore Lok Sabha member from the Congress camp. Srikantadatta lost the seat in 1991 when he contested on a BJP ticket and then again in 2003 when he returned to the Congress.
Yaduveer is pitted against Congress candidate M. Lakshmana, a local leader from the influential Vokkaliga community. The young scion is depending entirely on his family history and the “achievements” of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“All of you know the achievements of our Prime Minister. Whether they are roads, railway tracks doubling and electrification, new airports, increasing the number of universities from 400 to 1,000, increasing the number of medical colleges from 349 to 700 or Vande Bharat trains from zero to 40. Like our Prime Minister said, ‘this is only a trailer’,” the soft-spoken Yaduveer told residents of Lingabudi Palya, about 22km from Mysuru city.
“The Prime Minister has planned for the next 23 years to make India better than the West by 2047. You will see more development in the coming years,” he said, repeating similar lines at other corner meetings.
In the “royal” versus commoner fight for Mysuru, Lakshmana belongs to a group of leaders with good grassroots connections.
While he was a contender for a ticket in last year’s state elections, Lakshmana stepped aside upon being asked by chief minister Siddaramaiah.
A loyalist of Siddaramaiah, Lakshmana admitted it was a prestigious battle since Mysuru is the chief minister’s home district. Like other Congress candidates in the state, he is also banking heavily on the five guarantees that the government rolled out.
“I always wanted to contest against Pratap Simmha and defeat him here in Mysuru. But I am confident of winning this battle and don’t believe that sentiments for the Wadiyar family would translate to votes,” he told reporters during a campaign.
There are, however, elders like Sembiah, a Vokkaliga farmer, who lives in Remabai Nagara, some 23km from the city, who still holds the Wadiyars in high esteem.
“I have personally seen the previous maharaja (Srikantadatta) when he used to go around meeting people. Our maharajas are very benevolent and gave us land, water (for irrigation), electricity and educated our children (by setting up academic
institutions),” he told The Telegraph.
Sembiah didn’t have a shred of doubt about the ability of Yaduveer and promised to vote for him. “He is educated and will be as capable as his predecessors. I will vote
for him,” said the man in his late 60s.
Mysore and southern Karnataka constituencies voted on April 26
