The Congress party is facing an internal crisis in the Davanagere South Assembly by-election, where discontent among Muslim leaders and a surge of rebel candidates have raised the prospect of vote-splitting in a constituency long shaped by the party’s core support base.
The trigger for the unrest is the party’s decision to field Samarth Mallikarjun, a family member of late MLA Shamanur Shivashankarappa, instead of a Muslim candidate.
Senior leaders have been working to persuade more than a dozen Muslim Independent candidates to withdraw from the contest and consolidate support behind the party nominee, while attempting to reassure voters that the community has not been sidelined.
The strain has also exposed divisions within the party’s leadership, with Minister B Z Zameer Ahmed Khan staying away from campaigning in Davanagere and Deputy Chief Minister and state Congress president D K Shivakumar facing criticism for his remarks.
The tensions follow a March 20 meeting convened by AICC general secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala and Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, where Muslim leaders pressed their demand for the ticket, citing their numerical strength.
The Congress has sought to signal its commitment to the constituency through a ₹100 crore allocation for infrastructure development in the 2026–2027 state budget, but the Bharatiya Janata Party has sought to capitalise on the divisions, urging Muslim voters to defeat the Congress candidate.
