Mysore: Yaduveer Krishnadatta Wadiyar of BJP (Titular King of Mysore) vs M Lakshman (Congress)

Yaduveer Krishnadatta Wadiyar, revered as the ‘Maharaja of Mysore,’ ventured into the realm of electoral politics in the recent Lok Sabha elections. The BJP anointed him as their candidate for the Mysore Lok Sabha constituency, supplanting the incumbent MP, Pratap Simha.

At 31 years of age, Yaduveer, educated in the United States, ascended as the titular sovereign of the erstwhile Mysuru royal lineage on May 28, 2015, becoming the 27th monarch of the Wadiyar dynasty. Pramoda Devi Wadiyar, the widow of Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Wadiyar—the last descendant of the Wadiyar dynasty—adopted Yaduveer Gopal Raj Urs, as the couple was without progeny. Subsequently, he was rechristened Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar. He has been an active proponent of the Swachh Bharat campaign, spearheaded by the central government, and has served as the campaign’s ambassador in Mysuru for the past two years. Additionally, he is an emissary for the Kalisu Foundation, an organization committed to enhancing educational opportunities in the Old Mysore region, positively impacting over 5,800 students.

Contrarily, the Congress party presented M Lakshman, an engineer-turned-politician. Despite lacking the prominence of Yaduveer, the Congress party deems securing Mysore as a matter of prestige, with CM Siddaramaiah originating from the region. Lakshman has accentuated his commoner status in his campaign, asserting his accessibility to the populace in contrast to his royal adversary. He even promulgated his manifesto for the constituency, delineating his vision for Mysuru’s development.

2024 Elections:

In the 2024 elections, the Mysore constituency registered 2,092,222 voters, with a voter turnout of 70.62% (1,477,576 total votes), as per the Election Commission’s data. The constituency went to the polls in the second phase on April 26, 2024.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, BJP’s Prathap Simha triumphed in Mysore, garnering 688,974 votes, which constituted 52.27% of the total votes. He defeated Congress’s C.H. Vijayashankar by a margin of 138,647 votes. Simha had previously secured victory in 2014 as well, obtaining 503,908 votes (43.46%) and overcoming Congress candidate Adagooru H Vishwanath by a margin of 31,608 votes.