Dropped Hindutva firebrand leader could dent BJP's chances in Uttara Kannada

UTTARA Kannada is a constituency that was comfortably in the BJP pocket for 27 years, represented as it was in the Lok Sabha by firebrand Hindutva leader Ananthkumar Hegde. In 2019, he won the seat by a margin of 4.79 lakh votes.

- SUBHASH CHANDRA NS

But controversy is his middle name. It often gets him into trouble though he manages to wriggle out on most occasions. Then came the blunder in the second week of March when the general election fever was gradually building up. He said the BJP’s pitch for 400-plus Lok Sabha seats was to change the Constitution to promote Hinduism.

“Why does the BJP need 400+ seats? Congress leaders in the past made changes to the Constitution in a way that it doesn’t put Hinduism in front. We need to change it and save our religion. We already have two-thirds majority in the Lok Sabha, but not enough in the Rajya Sabha to amend the Constitution. 400+ will help us achieve that,” he reportedly said.