Even though it looks that the launch of Namma TYGR, a cab service in Bengaluru, on Wednesday by JD(S) chief HD Kumaraswamy is to take on Ola and Uber, but in reality it will be an offshoot of creating a vote-bank ahead of Assembly polls in Karnataka.

The cab service which has been launched in Bengaluru wants to grab all the dissatisfied drivers from other two big players in the ride hailing space, and they say they have already signed up with 10,000 drivers to ride the cartel to a decisive political gamble.

According to a close aide of Kumaraswamy, the drivers mostly were from Vokkaliga belt  from Ramanagara, Hassana, Mandya, Channapatna, and other places to name a few.  This is for the first time a political party is backing a taxi firm which has a foresight on elections. According to sources many who migrated to Bengaluru had lost all the agricultural income and were lured by the  big players with incentives. But the incentive regime has gone and drivers have left with no option but to find alternatives. 

Political analysts feel the JD(S), a party of HD Deve Gowda and sons, which is expected to play a crucial role in the ensuing elections in case of a hung Assembly, wants to capitalise on this new found vote-bank initiative, a tactical move by former Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy.

The lucrative incentives initially offered by Uber and Ola attracted tens of thousands of young villagers towards this new job opportunity.  While the big money continued for the first few years, the cab giants started reducing the incentives after competition heated up, making it unviable for many cab drivers. Thousands of drivers abandoned their cabs and returned to their villages in the first few months of this year. Others took to streets demanding better working conditions and incentives from Uber and Ola.

JD(S) State chief HD Kumaraswamy sensed an opportunity and quickly extended his support to the drivers who were deprived of incentives by the big players. When the talks with the managements failed, he promised them that he will start his own app-based cab service to protect the interests of drivers and passengers. For this, he tied up with a Kolkata based start-up firm TYGR.

The trial runs for this service started in September. According to Kumaraswamy, about 5,000 cabs will hit the streets on Wednesday. But Kumaraswamy denied that this venture was to create a neo vote bank for the party but to help the drivers. He said “I am not doing it for votes. The Assembly election is not the reason. Most of these cab drivers are villagers and are being exploited by bigger players. Many have sold their small piece of land to buy a vehicle. They were in bad shape. I heard their stories and wept. It is my humble initiative to help them to stand on their own feet”.

Former Prime Minister who launched this service said it was for a social cause and an obligation to the drivers who were deprived.  He said  “Please don’t link it to upcoming assembly polls. As Kumaraswamy has already clarified, it is a humanitarian venture by the JDS to help the poor cab owners and drivers. Namma TYGR fares are low compared to others. Even the people benefit from this”.

If his political calculations goes well Kumaraswamy might ride TYGR to seat of power or can become a kingmaker.