Former Minister and JD(S) leader C.S. Puttaraju said former Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy will be the candidate of the BJP and JD(S) alliance for the Mandya Lok Sabha seat. “It’s 100% certain that the former CM will enter the poll fray in Mandya. All of us will ensure that he wins the electoral battle with a big margin,” he told reporters in Mysuru on March 21.
Mr. Puttaraju, who was earlier said to be the frontrunner for the ticket in Mandya, stated that he will take responsibility of the election in Mandya and ensure that the former CM wins the poll without any hard work. “Let Mr. Kumaraswamy come to Mandya only for filing the nomination papers. We will look after his poll campaign and ensure his win,” he said.
To a question on the serious attempts by sitting MP Sumalatha Ambareesh for the BJP ticket, he said, “We are ready to talk to her on the issue. The scenario is different now when compared to the 2019 election.”
He said the people of Mandya will choose Mr. Kumaraswamy, who lives in Bidadi which is just half-an-hour drive from Mandya while the Congress candidate ‘Star’ Chandru stays in Dollars Colony in Bengaluru, which is over two hours away from Mandya.
“People in Mandya have kept Mr. Kumaraswamy in their heart. The statements of the Congress candidate that he would stay in Mandya does not hold any value.”
He lashed out at the Congress for remaining in the INDIA bloc when DMK, a constituent of the bloc, had opposed the Mekedatu project in its manifesto.
Mr Puttaraju had earlier represented the Melkote Assembly constituency. He had a casual meeting with the sitting MLA of Melkote Darshan Puttanaiah. Mr. Puttaraju sought his support for Mr. Kumaraswamy in the election.
The Mandya ticket has remained an unresolved issue between the alliance partners with Sumalatha Ambareesh sticking to her demand for the ticket though reports said she was offered a ticket in other constituencies, which she firmly refused and insisted that she would only contest the polls from Mandya.
Ms. Sumalatha had expressed several times that the BJP will consider her candidature and she would contest the polls on the party symbol. She had met Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and BJP national president J.P. Nadda with regard to her pursuit of the BJP ticket. She met the senior BJP leaders and sought a ticket after the party entered into an alliance with the JD(S).
Congress has nominated ‘Star’ Chandru (Venkataramane Gowda). The party holds five out of seven Assembly seats in Mandya parliamentary constituency. Hence, the Congress is confident of winning the seat. Its leaders have begun campaigning.
