Efforts to solve deadlock fail; CM Siddaramaiah to consult party senior leaders in New Delhi.
Supporters of former minister V. Muniyappa mob Chief Minister Siddaramaiah as he arrives at the KPCC office in Bengaluru on Tuesday (Photo: KPN)
BENGALURU: As all efforts to arrive at a consensus on selection of Congress candidate for Kolar-Chikkaballapur constituency failed, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is planning to leave for New Delhi to consult central leaders of the party and announce the candidate on Wednesday, the last date for submission of nominations for polls to the Legislative Council.
During one-on-one meetings with both Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and KPCC president, Dr G. Parameshwar leaders from Kolar and Chikkaballpur districts expressed divergent views on their choice of candidate. Therefore, Mr Siddaramaiah reportedly suggested to all leaders that he would take the help of central leaders to pick the best candidate for the constituency.
Speaking to Deccan Chronicle, a senior leader observed that former minister V. Muniyappa emerged as “hot favourite” among five legislators — former Speaker K.R. Ramesh Kumar, Naseer Ahmed, MLC, deputy Speaker Shivashankar Reddy, Bagepalli MLA S. N. Subba Reddy and Chikkaballpura MLA K. Sudhakar. They suggested that Chikkaballapur district had been deprived of representation in the Legislative Council for more than 25 years, and therefore the party should select its candidate from Chikkaballapur district. “As part of this strategy, all these five legislators batted in favour of Mr Muniyappa, who is also a veteran leader from the district,” the leader added.
The leader said Chikkaballapur MP Veerappa Moily and Kolar MP K.H. Muniyappa did not attend the meeting. Mr Siddaramaiah and Dr Parameshwar held a lengthy telephonic conversation with them and based on their inputs, Mr Siddaramaiah reportedly decided to go to Delhi to finalise the name of the candidate.
Supporters of Siddu, Muniyappa lobbying hard in Delhi:
The tussle over selection of candidate for Kolar-Chikkaballapur constituency has resulted in hectic lobbying in Delhi by second rung leaders of Congress who are also filing complaints and counter-complaints to scuttle the prospects of the rival candidate. While camp followers of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah have been demanding ticket for R.L. Jalappa’s son-in-law G.H. Nagaraja, former Union minister K.H. Muniyappa and Kolar strongman has been batting for Kolar DCC president Anil Kumar. Another section, however, has sought ticket for former minister, V. Muniyappa.
Speaking to DC, a senior leader observed that supporters of Mr Muniyappa reportedly alleged that the candidate backed by Mr Siddaramaiah’s camp remained disloyal to the Congress, and therefore, he should not be given ticket. The anti-Muniyappa camp filed complaint that Mr Muniyappa’s candidate was appointed as chairman of MSIL Corporation and was also DCC president, two reasons to deny him the ticket. Those belonging to Mr Muniyappa’s camp have reportedly submitted dossier against former minister V. Muniyappa, whose name figures in illegal mining scam being probed by the CBI. Meanwhile, supporters of Mr. V. Muniyappa mobbed Mr Siddaramaiah on Tuesday when he arrived at the KPCC office to hold a meeting with Kolar-Chikkaballpur leaders. Upset by the incident, Mr Siddaramaiah expressed his displeasure to Mr Muniyappa. This is not the way to demand ticket. You could have raised your demand in party forum,” the leader added.
Rebels may spoil ruling party’s prospects in DK:
It’s not the contest between traditional rival Congress and BJP, but the one between Pratapchandra Shetty, MLC, and rebel ruling party candidate Jayaprakash Hegde which people are keen to witness during elections to the Legislative Council on December 27. The constituency has two seats, with Congress and BJP representing one each. Both parties, however, have decided to repeat the formula adopted in 2008 by fielding one candidate each as part of a strategy to ensure that they win the seats unopposed. But former minister Mr Hegde could queer the pitch for Mr Shetty as leaders of the ruling party picked the latter despite opposition from not only Mr Hegde but other senior leaders including Harikrishna Bantwal, and former chief of Udupi ZP, Mr Bhujanga Shetty. While Mr Hegde and Mr Shetty have submitted nomination papers, Mr Harikrishna would follow suit on Wednesday. This year with 3,504 votes, BJP is sure to win one seat, and Congress has 2,708 votes and therefore could win the other seat. The contest between Mr Shetty and Mr Hegde for the second seat, however, has made the election more interesting.
“It is not going to be easy for Mr Shetty as Mr Hegde will pose a strong challenge as he enjoys good support in Congress especially in Udupi district. There are many leaders who are angry with Mr Pratapchandra Shetty and others of the Congress. These votes might go in favor of Mr Hegde. The party could issue a whip only to urban local body members. But majority of voters are panchayat members who do not come under whip. If Mr Hegde’s supporters mobilize panchayat members it will be a tough fight for us,” admitted a senior Congress leader, adding “It is likely to be tough fight between Mr Shetty and Mr Hegde. Mr Shetty can breathe easy only if Congress MLAs and ministers concentrate on their respective constituencies and bring votes to our candidate.” It would not be a cake walk for Mr Hegde too. A popular leader in Udupi, he would have a tough task on hand in DK. “Reaching voters of Sullia, Puttur and Belthangady may be difficult for Mr Hegde as there are less than 20 days for the election,” said a leader.
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( Source : deccan chronicle )
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