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If BJP cedes Mandya seat to JD(S), it stays to be seen whether or not Sumalatha will contest as an unbiased as soon as once more, as she did in 2019 (PTI Photo)
The BJP high brass’ determination concerning the Mandya Lok Sabha seat is keenly awaited with party-backed sitting Independent MP Sumalatha Ambareesh and its alliance associate JD(S) each making a robust pitch for the ticket.
While JD(S) has conveyed to the BJP management that it desires to discipline its candidate, multilingual actress-turned-politician Sumalatha has additionally thrown her hat within the ring and desires to contest on a ticket from the nationwide get together.
JD(S) is agency on this seat–which is positioned between Bengaluru and Mysuru– because the constituency is dominated by Vokkaligas, the group that types its sturdy voter base. The get together headed by former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda has already performed a number of rounds of conferences beneath its state President H D Kumaraswamy to resolve on the candidate.
Incidentally in 2019, Sumalatha had defeated the then Chief Minister Kumaraswamy’s son Nikhil, the joint candidate of Congress-JD(S) alliance in Mandya, identified in Kannada as ‘Sakkare Naadu’ (land of sugar).
Mandya is understood for its rivalry between Congress and JD(S) for supremacy. The BJP too over time has been placing in efforts to make inroads right here.
Sumalatha got here into the image in 2019 after the demise of her husband and fashionable movie star M H Ambareesh, who represented Mandya within the Lok Sabha.
In that election, she had defeated Nikhil Kumaraswamy of JD(S), Deve Gowda’s grandson, by an enormous margin of 1,25,876 votes.
However, BJP sources mentioned that this time, the get together might go away Mandya seat to its alliance associate, This is regardless of many native leaders supporting Sumalatha’s candidacy from the get together and opposing the transfer to provide the seat to JD(S).
JD(S) has began firming up plans for Mandya; although there’s stress on H D Kumaraswamy to contest, former Minister and ex-MP C S Puttaraju may get the ticket, if the previous chooses to not, get together sources mentioned.
Not eager to remark a lot on who will get the Mandya ticket, Kumaraswamy has been sustaining that the BJP excessive command will announce the choice.
Sumalatha too has expressed confidence about getting the ticket from Mandya reposing religion with the BJP central management. She had earlier met the get together’s high brass together with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and nationwide President J P Nadda.
“The High Command (BJP) has to say, they have to make a decision. My decision, not to leave Mandya, is always strong,” she has mentioned.
If BJP cedes Mandya seat to JD(S), it stays to be seen whether or not Sumalatha will contest as an unbiased as soon as once more, as she did in 2019, after Congress denied her the ticket and gave it to JD(S). Sumalatha rode on a sympathy wave following her husband’s demise.
Popular Kannada movie stars like Darshan and Yash had campaigned for her then. Darshan has mentioned he’ll marketing campaign and assist her this time too, addressing her as “mother”.
Congress, banking on its assure schemes being carried out, has fielded Venkatarame Gowda (Star Chandru), a contractor, as its candidate from Mandya, regardless of opposition from throughout the get together. Gowda is the brother of Independent MLA from Gauribidanur Okay H Puttaswamy Gowda, who backed the Congress within the latest Rajya Sabha polls.
Mandya has eight meeting segments, out of which six are represented by Congress, and one every by JD(S) and ‘Sarvodaya Karnataka Paksha’.
(Only the headline and film of this report might have been reworked by the Business Standard employees; the remainder of the content material is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
First Published: Mar 10 2024 | 3:03 PM IST
