Daijiworld Media Network – Mangalore (SP)

Mangalore, Dec 2: Sitting MLC and Congress Party nominee, K Pratapchandra Shetty, filed his nomination for the legislative council, from Dakshina Kannada local bodies constituency on Tuesday December 1. Accompanied by Congress Party leaders from Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts like Dakshina Kannada District Congress Committee president (DCC), B Ramanath Rai, Udupi DCC president, M A Gafoor, MLA U T Khader, former minister, K Jayaprakash Hegde, accompanied Shetty. The papers were received by the additional deputy commissioner, Prabhakar Sharma.

Speaking to reporters after filing his papers, Pratapchandra Shetty thanked All India Congress Committee president, Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Oscar Fernandes, Veerappa Moily, Janardan Poojary and various other leaders for choosing him as the party candidate.

As at the closing day for filing of nominations for the council election on Tuesday, a total of seven candidates filed 13 sets of nomination papers from Dakshina Kannada local bodies constituency.  Kota Srinivas Poojary (BJP), K Pratapchandra Shetty (Congress), Krishnaraj Hegde (JDS) and independent candidates, former MLA, K Kushala Bellare, A M Ismail Manjanady, Rajitkumar Shetty Kundapur and Prabhakar Prabhu Bantwal remain in the fray. With the filing of nomination by a JDS candidate, the state level alliance between the Congress and the JDS seems to have failed to work in coastal Karnataka.

Out of the above, five nominations were filed on Tuesday. Prabhakar Prabhu was the first to file his nomination on November 29, followed by Kota Srinivas Poojary, the next day.

The nomination papers will be scrutinized at 11 am today. December 4 will be the last date for the withdrawal of the nominations.