Bellary:
Stooping to feed grain to a black cow as a religious offering at his unfinished mansion, politician and rags-to-riches millionaire
B Sriramulu may need help from the gods if he is to win a hard-fought race for the parliamentary seat of
Bellary, which voted earlier this month.
He faces criminal charges, including attempted murder in a case dating back to 2007, and has close links with a jailed mining tycoon. (
Will Bellary's Sriramulu hurt BJP's anti-graft plank?)
The son of a railway station worker in Bellary, in Karnataka, Mr Sriramulu said that all charges against him were false. He has not been convicted of any crime.
"I'm just a poor man. My father was a luggage porter," he said, standing beneath a picture of his children smiling next to a gold, jewel-encrusted crown that was donated to a temple by his jailed associate.
In fact, Mr Sriramulu declared assets of $2.5 million or Rs 15 crores when he registered as a candidate in 2014, a fortune by Indian standards. When finished, his imposing house will be the size of a hotel and feature a swimming pool.
Mr Sriramulu's bid for office comes as India votes in an election ending on May 12 that looks set to oust the ruling Congress party, in part because of anger over a group of voluptuous corruption scandals.
The opposition BJP is likely to lead the next government, according to opinion polls. Yet it is the BJP who chose Mr Sriramulu as its candidate in a sign that, for all the rhetoric about cleaning up politics, parties are willing to back figures facing criminal charges.
Bellary, where an iron ore boom swelled politicians' funds, is known for lavish campaigns. Ahead of last Thursday's vote, election officers in the town raided the homes of Mr Sriramulu's allies after seizing $1.4 million or Rs 8.50 crores from a money lender that was destined, they said, to buy votes.
It was the biggest haul of suspected slush money so far out of election-related seizures of $36 million or Rs 218 crores nationwide. Mr Sriramulu said he stuck to official spending limits. He said local government and election officials were unfairly targeting his campaign with video surveillance of his house and a series of raids on BJP workers.
Signs on the ground are that the contest for Bellary is desperately close.
At the last parliamentary election in 2009, the BJP won by only around 2,000 votes in the district of 2.5 million people or 25 lakhs. This time Mr Sriramulu is up against an elderly former judge with a clean image representing Congress.
Mr Sriramulu himself has been hit relatively hard by an alleged mining scam in Bellary, with his personal wealth now less than a third of the $8 million or Rs 48 crores he declared during a local election three years ago. Several politicians close to him are imprisoned. Among them is
Janardhana Reddy, Mr Sriramulu's former business associate and mentor who, along with his brothers, accrued power and wealth by exporting iron ore to China but is now behind bars on charges of illegal mining. (
Also read: Reddy brothers' clout to be tested in Bellary)
The Supreme Court suspended virtually all mining in the area in 2011 as a result of the case, putting thousands out of work and bringing down the BJP's first ever Karnataka government - in which Mr Reddy and Mr Sriramulu served as ministers.
Mr Sriramulu rejoined the BJP in March after resigning at the height of the mining scandal. His return split the BJP with Sushma Swaraj, who used to be his mentor, publicly disagreeing with the decision to welcome him back. A BJP spokeswoman said the party offered Mr Sriramulu an election ticket because he had not been charged in the mining case that blights Bellary to this day.
She did not mention the eight offences he has been charged with, and said a key factor in choosing him was his strong support among populous tribal groups in the area.
© Thomson Reuters 2014