The BJP’s central leadership has ignored the recommendation made by party’s Karnataka unit to field former Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa’s son in the June 3 biennial election to seven seats of Karnataka Legislative Council. The BJP had on Tuesday announced the candidature of former Deputy Chief Minister and party vice president Laxman Savadi, party’s state secretaries Hemalatha Nayak and and S Keshavaprasad, and President of SC Morcha Chalavadi Narayaswamy.
The state BJP core committee had recommended state BJP vice president B Y Vijayendra’s name to the central leadership, as one of the probable candidates. According to party sources, the leadership decided against giving ticket to Vijayendra, as it wants to field him as a candidate during the 2023 assembly elections, and is likely to give him a greater role in the party ahead of the polls as a placatory move.
There were also some reports that Yediyurappa had desired to make his son an MLC and then insist on making him Minister in the Basavaraj Bommai cabinet. There have been such demands from his supporters after Yediyurappa stepped down as Chief Minister in July last year.
The central leadership is also said to have decided against Vijayendra’s candidature, as it will weaken the BJP’s stand against dynasty politics, ahead of 2023 assembly polls, as Yediyurappa is currently a MLA from Shikaripura assembly seat, while his elder son B Y Ragahavendra is Shivamogga MP. The BJP announced the four candidates hours before the deadline for filing of nominations ends on Tuesday.
The JD(S) too announced former MLC T A Saravana as its candidate. The Congress has announced M Nagaraju Yadav and K Abdul Jabbar as its candidates.
The election is necessitated as the term of office of seven members expires on June 14. The seats will be falling vacant due to the retirement of MLCs — Laxman Savadi and Lahar Singh Siroya of BJP; Ramappa Timmapur, Allum Veerabhadrappa, and Veena Achaiah S of Congress; and H M Ramesha Gowda and Narayana Swamy K V of JD(S).
According to official sources, in this election, each MLC candidate will require a minimum of 29 votes to win, and on the basis of minimum votes required and tallying it with the strength of each party in the Legislative Assembly, the BJP is expected to win four seats, Congress two, and JD(S) one. Meanwhile, the BJP has fielded Basavaraj Horatti, who recently resigned as the Chairman of Karnataka Legislative Council and MLC, and joined the party, as candidate for upcoming MLC polls from West Teachers’ constituency.
Polls for two each Teacher’s and Graduate’s constituencies are scheduled on June 13. Considered to be the senior-most MLC, 76-year-old Horatti, who has been elected to the Upper House for seven successive terms, was earlier with the JD(S).
BJP has already announced the candidates for the remaining three seats: Arun Shahpur (North West Teachers’ constituency), Hanumant Rudrappa Nirani (North West Graduates’ constituency), and former MLC M V Ravishankar (South Graduates’ Constituency).
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