JOIN USThe battlelines have been drawn for the bypoll to the Udupi-Chikmagalur Lok Sabha constituency with the ruling BJP and the principal opposition, the Congress, officially declaring their candidates.
While the BJP finalised the name of former Karkala MLA Sunil Kumar as its candidate for the bypoll, the Congress has zeroed in on former minister K Jayaprakash Hegde. The bypoll is scheduled to be held on March 18.
Winning the bypoll will be a matter of prestige for the BJP as it has been necessitated by Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda vacating the seat after his election to the Legislative Council.
Announcing the candidature of Sunil Kumar, who is also the party’s Yuva Morcha president, BJP State president K S Eshwarappa in Shimoga said he was confident of the BJP winning the bypoll. He said of the eight Assembly constituencies in the Lok Sabha constituency, seven are represented by BJP MLAs. Besides, BJP is in power in Udupi and Chikmagalur Zilla Panchayats.
On its part, the Congress feels that Hegde’s candidature will be well received. The party will also appoint a top leader in charge of each of the eight Assembly segments in the Lok Sabha constituency in the next few days. In the 2009 Lok Sabha elections, Gowda defeated Hegde by a margin of 27,018 votes.
JD(S) may field Madhu
The JD(S) will announce its candidate on February 28. The party working president, H D Kumaraswamy, said the candidature of the party youth wing president Madhu Bangarappa was being considered.
Notification to hold the byelection will be issued on February 22. Counting of votes will be held on March 21.