Belagavi: The political legacy of the late Umesh Katti, once a towering figure in Hukkeri and the broader Belagavi district, is fast unravelling. In the six months since his passing, the Katti family has seen its control over key cooperative institutions steadily dismantled by a powerful alliance between the Jarkiholi and Jolle families.The shifting tide became evident after the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Ramesh Katti, former MP and brother of Umesh Katti, had lobbied for a BJP ticket from Chikkodi but was overlooked in favour of incumbent MP Annasaheb Jolle. Miffed by the party’s decision, Katti stayed away from the campaign — an absence widely perceived to have contributed to Jolle’s eventual defeat. Since then, political rivalry between the families has only intensified.The Jolle-Jarkiholi combine first struck in Nov 2024, engineering a change of guard at the influential Belagavi District Central Cooperative (BDCC) Bank. Ramesh Katti, who helmed the bank for 25 years, was forced to resign amid growing pressure. The move was spearheaded by Annasaheb Jolle and Arabhavi MLA Balachandra Jarkiholi.Two months later, they turned their sights on Hiranyakeshi Cooperative Sugar Factory in Sankeshwar, which had been under the Katti family’s stewardship since 1995. In Jan, seven of the factory’s 10 directors switched loyalties to the Jolle camp. Facing a no-confidence vote, Nikhil Katti — Umesh’s son — resigned as chairman. The coup was aided by local Congress leaders AB Patil and Shashikant Naik.Last week, the Kattis suffered yet another setback — this time at the Hukkeri Rural Electric Cooperative Society Ltd, a nationally significant institution established in 1968. The family had controlled the society for 27 years. But with 15 board directors aligning with the Jolle-Jarkiholi camp and facing a no-confidence motion, current chairman Kalagonda Patil stepped down pre-emptively.The alliance has now taken over three major institutions in half a year — the BDCC Bank, the Hiranyakeshi Sugar Factory, and the Hukkeri Electric Cooperative Society. Members from both factions suggest the next battlegrounds include the Agriculture Produce Marketing Committee (APMC), the Primary Land Development (PLD) Bank, and various taluk-level cooperative societies in Sankeshwar and Hukkeri.Former minister Shashikant Naik, a longtime critic of the Katti family, told TOI that the shift in public and institutional support is long overdue. “The sand beneath the feet of the Katti family is shifting now,” Naik said. “Kattis were dominant because people had no better or stronger option. They have that now in the Jarkiholi and Jolle team. The Kattis weakened cooperative institutions like the sugar factory and electric cooperative society. I won’t shy away from saying it was also my fault. I could not oppose their wrongdoings strongly enough at that time.”