Rebel Star's move upsets Congmen

Mysuru: The decision of  actor turned politician Ambarish not to contest these elections from Mandya and the Congress party deciding to field Bengaluru businessman, Ganiga Ravikumar in his place has not gone down well with party workers here, who feel let down by the “Rebel Star”. 

While Mr Ravikumar, who hails from Mandya, filed his nomination papers in the constituency on Tuesday, Mr  Ambarish's supporters vented their frustration at his casual  announcement of his political retirement. 

“We have worked for him for 19 years. He cannot simply sit somewhere and make an announcement like that,” said one of his supporters.

The fact that the actor/politician  refused to recommend a ticket from Mandya for any of his close aides has angered many as well. 

Many  expected him to bat for  his close associate, Amaravathi Chandrashekar, especially as Congress leaders had reportedly informed the latter that he would be fielded if he had Mr Ambarish’s backing.  But his failure to do so has allegedly upset Mr Chandrashekar , who is reported to have brought up the matter with him only to be told that he had not been promised anything to feel disappointed. But will Mr Ambarish’s decision to stay away from the elections altogether and not campaign for any candidate, make a difference to the party? Local leaders say that it's unlikely to make an impact as he had become less accessible to the people after his health deteriorated and his chances of victory from Mandya were not great even if he had contested the polls himself. 

“The elections in Mandya will go on like anywhere else in his absence,” they added.