Former MLC G Raghu Achar has charged that KPCC President D K Shivakumar cheated him by denying him a ticket to face the assembly election from the Chitradurga constituency.
Speaking to media persons, here on Thursday, after he was denied a ticket, he said the party leaders had suggested he contest the assembly polls rather than legislative council polls. "I worked hard to strengthen the party with the hope of getting the party ticket. But now, they have let me down only because I don't belong to the dominant caste. They have ruined my political career."
He said there are 197 small communities in the state and they did not get representation in politics after the former chief minister, the late D Devaraj Urs. It seems Shivakumar has no concern for such communities. The people of the Vishwakarma community will not back Congress for ignoring them. They would teach a lesson to Congress in the assembly polls.
He said each assembly constituency has around 5,000 to 17,000 voters in the community. "I would tour the state and ask voters of the community not to back Congress. I would ask seers of the community to direct voters of the community in this regard."
He also made it clear that he would contest the assembly election without fail and that he would file the nomination paper on April 17th. But he would take a call on facing the election either as a rebel Congress candidate or nominee of another political party after consulting supporters and voters of the constituency.