Channapatna: Kumaraswamy's Muslim outreach rudderless

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah assured that the notices would be withdrawn and that no one would be evicted, but the Opposition NDA has continued its protests.

Union Minister HD Kumaraswamy is reaching out to Muslim voters in the Channapatna Assembly seat on behalf of his son and JD(S) candidate Nikhil, but it appears to be mired in mixed messaging.

On the one hand, the former chief minister is trying to woo Muslim voters, but on the other, he is forced to affirm narratives from ally BJP that are explicitly hostile to the minority community.

Kumaraswamy, on October 27, met with local Muslim members of civil society and tried to convince them to vote for Nikhil, invoking party patriarch and father HD Devegowda's legacy. When asked by mediapersons about the visit, he said: "We have to take along all communities."

On October 30, he visited the Hazrat Aqeel Shah Qadri dargah, the shrine of a Sufi saint.