BJP names 20 Lok Sabha candidates for Karnataka
Anurag Thakur
Gautam Gambhir opted out of politics. For North West Delhi, which is a reserved seat, the party has decided to field Yogendra Chandolia, ignoring Hansraj owing to antiincumbency against him.
In the first list, the BJP had announced more than 190 candidates for the Lok Sabha polls, due in AprilMay.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in its second list of candidates for Lok Sabha polls announced 20 candidates from Karnataka. The party has dropped eight sitting MPs, including some heavyweights.
Former Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, much against his will, has been announced as a candidate from his home turf Haveri. Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar of the Mysuru royal family is being fielded from Mysuru. This comes after the party dropped MP Pratap Simha.
MAJOR FACES
The party also dropped former State President Nalin Kumar Kateel, sitting MP from Dakshina Kannada. Captain Brijesh Chowta will now contest from the constituency. MP Shobha Karandlaje has been shifted to the Bengaluru North constituency, once held by former Chief Minister and Union Minister Sadananda Gowda. In Karandlaje’s previous constituency UdupiChikkamagaluru, she had faced resistance to her renomination from her own party men. Former Minister Kota Srinivas Poojary is being fielded from that constituency. The Davangere constituency has been given to Gayatri Siddeshwara instead of her husband G Siddeshwara.
Former Minister of Social Welfare of Karnataka B Sriramulu and MP Tejasvi Surya have both retained their Bellari and Bengaluru South seats, respectively. Interestingly, JD(S) honcho HD Deve Gowda’s soninlaw CN Manjunath has been given a ticket from Bengaluru Rural. BJP strongman BS Yediyurappa’s son BY Raghavendra, the current Karnataka BJP chief, has been given a ticket from his family bastion of Shivamogga. He had won the Shivmogga seat in 2019 against JD(S).
Former Minister of Housing V Somanna will contest from Tumkur, Union Minister Pralhad Joshi will contest from Dharwad, Umesh G Yadav from Gulbarga, Annasaheb Shankar Jolle from Chikkodi, PC Gaddigoudar from Bagalkot, Ramesh Jigajinagi from Bijapur, Bhagwanth Khuba from Bidar, S Balaraj from Chamrajanagara and PC Mohan from Bengaluru Central.
The party has not named candidates for Belgavi, Uttara Kannada, Chikballapura, Chitradurga and Raichur constituencies. Further, Mandya, Hassan and Chikballapura are believed to be reserved for alliance partner JD(S).