BD NarayankarBengaluru, March 31 -- By-elections rarely change governments, but they often rewire egos. The Davangere South and Bagalkot bypolls in Karnataka are a case in point-two constituencies, yet a stage wide enough for prominent leaders to measure their standing, their influence, and perhaps their political future.
On the surface, the contests are straightforward electoral exercises necessitated by the passing of senior leaders Shamanur Shivashankarappa in Davangere and H.Y. Meti in Bagalkot. Beneath that surface, however, lies the familiar theatre of Indian politics, where sympathy, succession, and strategy intertwine, and where tickets are as contested as the elections themselves.
The Congress, in particular, appears to have nego...