Bangalore: BJP, JD(S) announce first list of candidates for Assembly polls
From Our Special Correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network - Bangalore
With DHNS Inputs
Bangalore, Apr 5: With the countdown for issuing the notification for Karnataka’s Assembly Polls scheduled for May 5 having started, the three major political parties in the State have finally managed to announce the names of their candidates for majority of the 224 assembly constituencies.
While the ruling BJP announced its first of 140 candidates in Delhi on Friday ensuring tickets for most of the sitting MLAs and ministers, who have remained loyal to the party, the opposition Congress that is dreaming of coming back to power denied to it since 2004 finally managed to release its first list of 170 candidates. The Congress list also ensures tickets to most of the party’s sitting MLAs.
All prominent sitting MLAs, including Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar, Deputy Chief Ministers K S Eshwarappa and R Ashoka and Assembly Speaker K G Bopaiah, will contest the elections.
The BJP played it safe by giving tickets to a majority of the sitting legislators but deferred announcing re-nomination of those who are facing serious corruption charges.
Sitting MLAs Katta Subramanya Naidu, Krishnaiah Setty and Y Sampangi do not figure in the first list. The BJP has also not announced any alternative candidates for these leaders in the constituencies presently represented by them.
In Bangalore, the BJP has not announced candidates for four constituencies. The party seems to be lenient towards legislators against whom private complaints have been filed in Lokayukta courts. They include K S Eshwarappa (Shimoga), R Ashoka (Padmanabhanagar), S R Vishwanath (Yelahanka), S Muniraju (Dasarahalli), C T Ravi (Chikmagalur), Murgesh Nirani (Bilagi) and Abhay Patil (Belgaum South).
The party has issued tickets to former Yeddyurappa loyalists Basavaraj Bommai, Umesh Katti and Murgesh Nirani. Nirani’s demand that he be given the Jamakhandi seat has been rejected. He has been asked to contest from Bilagi, his home turf. However, Somanna’s name has been left out.
Sitting legislators C C Patil, Lakshman Savadi and Krishna Palemar, who were caught in the infamous porngate episode, figure in the list.
The JD(S) national president and former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda announced the party’s first list of 122 candidates, which included his son and former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy, Bangalore Rural MP, who will contest from Ramanagara, and daughter-in-law Anita Kumaraswamy, who will shift from her Madhugiri constituency in Tumkur district to Channapatna, which was represented by C P Yogeshwar.
Incidentally, the Mandya JD(S) MP, N Cheluvarayaswamy, will be contesting from Nagamangala constituency in Mandya district. Raju Gouda alias Narasimha Naik (Surapura), Manappa Vajjal (Lingasagur) and H S Shankaralinge Gowda (Chamaraja), who resigned from BJP recently, have been fielded in their respective constituencies.
Former IPS officers Subhash Bharani and M C Narayana Gowda are the party nominees from Gandhinagar and Chikpet respectively. Madhu Bangarappa, son of former Chief Minister late S Bangarappa, is the candidate from Soraba, and former Home Minister P G R Sindhia from Kanakapura, as per the list released by Kumaraswamy.
BJP candidates in coastal region:
As already mentioned in these columns earlier, Sudhakar Shetty of BJP has got the ticket to contest from Udupi.
In Mangalore South, Yogish Bhat has been fielded against J R Lobo from Congress.
In Mangalore city north, Krishna J Palemar has got the ticket once again. The Congress is yet to announce its candidate for this constituency.
Chandrahas Ullal has got the ticket to contest from Mangalore. He will be up against U T Khadar from Congress.
The other BJP candidates from the coastal region announced in the first list are Rajesh Naik from Bantwal, S Angara from Sullia, Sukumar Shetty from Byndoor, Lalaji Mendon from Kaup and V Sunil Kumar from Karkala.