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With rollercoasters roaring in the background, Congress MLAs will spend two days at a luxury resort inside Wonderla before the crucial Karnataka Legislative Council contest
The Karnataka Legislative Council election comes weeks after DK Shivakumar replaced Siddaramaiah as Chief Minister. (PTI/File)
Wonderla, the amusement park on the outskirts of Bengaluru, boasts of more than 60 gravity-defying attractions for adventure seekers, the most famous being India’s first reverse loop rollercoaster, thrillingly named ‘Recoil’. For its latest guests though, the adrenaline rush would pale in comparison to the biggest rollercoasters of all — Indian politics.
Located on the premises of the Wonderla Amusement Park in Bidadi on Mysore Road is the Terrea by Wonderla resort, advertised as a “4-star leisure destination”. For the next two days, it is expected to play host to Congress MLAs who will be sequestered within the plush interiors until the June 18 Legislative Council elections.
Such comfortable and expensive isolation of lawmakers is nothing new in Indian politics; we even have a name for it — resort politics. But there is certainly an element of comedy in ageing politicians strategising in all seriousness amid boisterous screams of carefree adrenaline junkies being spun, tossed and launched in weightlessness at a distance.
Not that anyone believes for a moment that it’s all work and no play at such political retreats.
Lawmakers across parties and states have been known to enjoy spa services, massages, fine dining and even a spot of cricket or cards at such luxury establishments. The perks are often part of carefully managed routine designed to keep MLAs occupied and, most importantly, together.
During several high-stakes political crises over the past few decades, political parties have shifted MLAs to 5-star hotels and luxury resorts in Bengaluru, Jaipur, Hyderabad, Goa, Guwahati and other destinations, with free access to recreation facilities, group activities and premium hospitality while awaiting trust votes and no-confidence motions.
In 2022, for instance, the rebel Shiv Sena camp led by Eknath Shinde stayed at the Radisson Blu hotel in Guwahati as Maharashtra’s government teetered on the brink. Reports from multiple such instances over the years have described legislators participating in indoor games, yoga sessions, cultural programmes and informal gatherings while their party ‘handlers’ and ‘minders’ kept a close watch on their movement.
The party high commands are fine with however the prized inmates keep themselves entertained — as long as it is offline, for any contact with the world outside is prohibited or limited depending on what’s ultimately at stake.
So, who wouldn’t want to be cocooned in such luxury at someone else’s expense with a more-than-welcome digital detox? Well, some don’t.
It may surprise you to know that even the most comfortable confinement has produced escape artists. One of the earliest examples dates back to the late 1980s, when Haryana legislators being sheltered by the Congress reportedly slipped away despite elaborate precautions, helping cement the legend of resort politics in India.
Over the years, political camps across states have had to contend with lawmakers going incommunicado, changing loyalties or quietly leaving designated locations despite strict monitoring.
To Congress’s relief, there is no inkling of such an attempt this time. The party is expected to comfortably win four of the seven vacant seats in the Legislative Council based on its numbers in the Legislative Assembly, while two seats are projected to be won by the BJP.
The real thriller is the seventh seat with both the Congress and JD(S) fielding candidates for it despite not having enough strength to win on their own. The ruling Congress has 134 MLAs in the 224-member Assembly, followed by the BJP with 62. The JD(S) has 18 MLAs.
Congress candidates in the fray for the Legislative Council elections are Thippannappa Kamknoor, PV Mohan, state unit chief BK Hariprasad, Shivanna BS, and Vinay Karthik Prakash. The JD(S) has fielded Govindaraju.
About the Author
Nitya Thirumalai, News Editor at News18.com, writes on Indian and global politics as well as Formula 1. She was Google News Initiative-Columbia Journalism School Fellow in the inaugural Newsroom Leade…Read More
Karnataka, India, India
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