Coast not clear for BJP in Karnataka Hindutva hub Karwar, Congress hopes to ‘sell’ with ‘wind of change’

The pungent smell of fresh fishing in Karnataka’s coastal town of Karwar has the Congress smelling of an opportunity in this Hindutva bastion of the Bharatiya Janata Party. The Congress hopes that the winds of change in the state will sweep through this constituency in Uttara Kannada, which has been a BJP stronghold. Ananth Kumar Hegde, a former Lok Sabha MP from the Uttara Kannada constituency where Karwar falls, has ensured that the Hindutva flag flies high in this sleepy coastal town. The Congress hopes to break this hold.

While the BJP is eyeing a second term for Rupali Naik, the Congress has fielded Satish Krishna Sail. But the opposition party may face some trouble as the votes may be split by the Janata Dal (Secular) and the Aam Aadmi Party, which have fielded candidates from here.

Karwar is the epitome of fusion culture, thanks to its proximity to Goa, which is about an hour’s drive away. This is the reason why Goa is eyeing the 12 islands in Karwar and wants the region to be merged with the smallest state of India.

I ask them this as the fishermen begin to finish their work. Subhash, 23, hopes to make fishing his family business a bigger venture. He works part time in a private company nearby. “I believe in Kannada pride,” he says. “Karwar is Karnataka and we cannot let it go. Even our fish is better than theirs.” Others standing next to him agree.

The situation is a bit awkward for the BJP as it has governments in both Karnataka and Goa.

Karwar has adopted many cultures, but now it is not ready to give up its culture. It’s no wonder that Karwar’s largest and most popular beach is called Rabindranath Tagore Beach, a testimony to the Nobel laureate’s years spent writing poems here.

As soon as I talk to the fishermen here, someone comes up to me and mentions Atiq Ahmed.

“A journalist like you killed him. I think it’s good that he was killed,” he says.

It is the UP factor and phenomenon that the BJP hopes will help it succeed. Pushing the Hindutva agenda has worked in the past in this saffron zone. Facing infighting, the BJP is counting on him to do the job again. And the popular beach resort of Karwar, it is hoped, is just the first dot on the Karnataka map that could be a success story for the saffron party.

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