By S Gopinath Reddy

Yogi Adityanath, Akilesh Yadav and Mayawati… what do the two former and the current chief minister of UP have to do with the Karnataka elections?

The Akhilesh-Mayawati combine humbled Adityanath in the recent by-elections for two Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh pushing the volatile chief minister on to the back foot. However, they are again set to lock horns with the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister far down in the southern state of Karnataka which is going to polls on May 12.

BJP still believes that Adityanath is its poster boy after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and is keen on utilizing his services in the states which are going to polls. All appeared smooth till BJP bit the dust in the by-elections. Undeterred, BJP as planned earlier is pushing the saffron-clad Chief Minister into the ring in Karnataka.

The Karnataka unit of BJP has chalked out a campaign schedule for Adityanath and he would be addressing no less than 30 meetings and rallies in the Western parts of Karnataka beginning May 3. BJP believes that Adityanath would surely influence the voters and that they would stand to gain from his electioneering.

On the other hand, BSP supremo Mayawati has already begun campaigning in Karnataka. She has entered into an alliance with Deve Gowda’s JD (S) and kicked off her electioneering with a meeting in Mysuru on April 25. She is also likely to address over three dozen rallies in the days to come.

On his part, Akhilesh Yadav will also address some meetings in support of his Samajwadi Party candidates. The SP has fielded its candidates in 35 constituencies. With the top three leaders of Uttar Pradesh hitting the road in Karnataka, elections have become all the more interesting.

JD (S) which is tipped to play the role of kingmaker in the event of a hung Assembly has been desperately trying to woo Telugu voters, who form a crucial part of Karnataka elections. Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao called on Deve Gowda and his son Kumaraswamy, the flag bearer for the party recently and called upon Telugus to support JD (S). Kumaraswamy is also planning to seek the support of Telugu cinema star and Janasena Party chief Pawan Kalyan to spare time and campaign for JD (S). However, Pawan Kalyan’s tour schedule has not been finalized yet.

With the entire country’s focus is on Karnataka polls, it is no wonder that leaders from different states are seen pitching their tents on the Kannada land. This trend is likely to continue for the next two weeks.