Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru (SP)

Bengaluru, Feb 24: Chief minister H D Kumaraswamy, has begun to take active part in the seat sharing process for the Lok Sanbha election. He wants to pursue long-term strategy for the success of the party by drawing up plans from the point of selecting party candidates.

Kumaraswamy wants to stop Congress, which is taking a tough stand on allotment of constituencies, in its tracks. His plan is to ensure success of all the JD(S) candidates in the election and thereby achieving increased strength of the party. It is said that he has also instructed the party functionaries and prospective candidates to be prepared to go all alone in case the talks fail and Congress decides to break the understanding.

The state is ruled by Congress - JD(S) combine. Kumaraswamy feels that if he takes lead in campaigning, he can attract votes towards his party by placing before the people various schemes announced in the budget for their welfare. Therefore, it is said that there is likelihood of Kumaraswamy too becoming a party to the one-to-one meeting proposed between Deve Gowda and Rahul Gandhi to nail the issue of allocation of constituencies to the two parties.

With this in mind, Kumaraswamy held preliminary meeting with party leaders from Kolar, Chikkaballapur, Bengaluru Bengaluru rural, Tumakuru, Chitradurga, and Davanagere districts on Saturday. He has instructed district presidents of his party in other districts to attend a meeting being convened during the next week. When a few leaders came up with the suggestion to fight the election all alone without having truck with Congress, the chief minster reportedly asked them to be prepared to face such an eventuality.

It is said that JD(S) has been demanding 12 constituencies with the hope that they would be able to get nine to ten constituencies at least. As per information, a group within the Congress is insisting that JD (S) should not be given more than six constituencies. This group wants that JD(S) should not be allowed to become stronger as against Congress in the state. Because of this attitude, Deve Gowda has not been holding discussions with state Congress leaders. He wants to finalise the deal directly during discussions with Rahul Gandhi.

JD(S) sources say that some of the prospective candidates tentatively finalised by party leadership are Nikhil Gowda, Laxmi Ajswin Gowda or Shivarame Gowda from Mandya, Prajwal Revanna from Hassan, Madhu Bangarappa from Shivamogga, Ramesh Babu or A T Krishnappa from Tumakuru, Raja Rrangappa Nayaka from Raichur, Gopal Gowda from Chikkaballapur, Thimmarayappa from Chitradurga and P G R Sindia from Bidar.