BENGALURU — Millions of citizens in Bagalkot and Davangere South began the arduous process of performing their civic duty Thursday, acting as the necessary human witnesses for the inheritance of two legislative seats by the offspring of the men who previously owned them.

The by-elections, necessitated by the deaths of veteran Congress leaders H.Y. Meti and Shamanur Shivashankarappa, have been framed by party leadership not as a political contest, but as a standard administrative hand-over of the family business.

In Bagalkot, voters were asked to confirm that Umesh Meti is, in fact, the biological son of the late H.Y. Meti, a qualification that election observers noted is significantly more difficult to disprove than a standard policy platform. Meanwhile, in Davangere South, the electorate is expected to ratify Samarth Shamanur—the grandson of the late incumbent and son of current Horticulture Minister S.S. Mallikarjun—as the rightful heir to the local butter dosa photo-ops.

"We believe in the power of the people to choose which specific DNA sequence best represents their interests," said a senior party strategist, while double-checking the spelling of 'Samarth' on a stack of pre-printed victory banners. "It is a beautiful democratic cycle: the father serves until the end, the son serves until the next generation finishes college, and the voter stays exactly where we left them."

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who spent the week leading 'high-voltage' roadshows, emphasized the gravity of the moment by publicly consuming a Davangere Benne Dose. Sources close to the Chief Minister confirmed the butter-to-carb ratio was 'strategically sound' and symbolized the government’s commitment to keeping things exactly as they were in 2023.

Opposition leaders have criticized the move, arguing that the seats should instead be transferred to the children of *their* deceased leaders, citing a lack of 'bipartisan nepotism' in the current administrative setup.

As of 2:00 PM, voter turnout was steady, with many residents reporting that they were happy to sign the 2,59,260-person affidavit required to ensure the Shamanur and Meti household stationary remains accurate for the 2026-2028 legislative session.