JOIN USBJP, JD(S) oppose tickets to outsiders
Members of the JD(S) and the BJP have said that they would fight the upcoming Assembly elections only if tickets are not given to candidates from outside the constituencies.
“We are not concerned about who is given the ticket, we will certainly campaign for them with full fervour. The only objection we would have is if it is a contestant of not local origin or residence,” say the members, and even some of the party leaders.
“There are, after all, many outsiders, including social workers. But if such hopefuls are given the ticket, the party is sure to lose.”
They were expressing their opinions at the JD(S) and BJP party meetings on Friday at a resort outside the City and at Mulbagal.
Kolar
The matter of who would be best suited to contest the elections is said to have been discussed during the meeting in the presence of Chief Whip of the State government Dr A N Shivayogi Swamy, and Members of Legislative Council D S Veeraiah and Y A Narayanaswamy.
District unit president of the BJP N Lakshmaiah, who spoke on the occasions, explained, “Candidates from outside the constituencies will have no or little idea about the needs of the local residents. They will also not know the citizens. Then, regardless of the efforts put in by the activists at campaigning, the candidates, in all probability will lose the elections. The party leaders here feel that it would, therefore, be appropriate to give tickets to local politicians.”
Omshakti Chalapathi, the president of the BJP District Youth Forum, K R Pillappa, Kolar Education Cell district coordinator, as well as Pramila and Hoovalli Chalapathi of the BJP Women’s Forum are in queue for the BJP ticket from the constituency.
U-turn
Mohan Reddy, the secretary of the National Youth Forum of the BJP, had also expressed a desire to contest the elections from Kolar constituency, but has backtracked. He did not even attend the party meeting on Friday, said Lakshmaiah.
The number of outside contenders for tickets is also pretty high in Mulbagal constituency, but the clamour of the members insisting on giving local contestants tickets is on the rise. Lakshmaiah clarified that the matter would be brought to the notice of the party leaders before taking any decision.
Meeting in B’lore
The BJP will have a meeting in Bangalore on March 31 in relation to the selection of candidates, said the district president, adding, however, that he too preferred giving tickets to local contenders rather than outsiders.
JD(S)
The JD(S) is facing a similar scene in the district, with contenders in Mulbagal G M Govindappa, C V Gopal, Shridhar Murthy, Aluvelamma Rajagopal, Dr Jayaram and Sriramappa submitting a memorandum to taluk president of the party Alangur Shivashankar on Friday to this effect.
“The party had given B Form to an outside contender during the 2008 elections. As a result, the party had lost, in spite of being led by the Late Alangur Srinivas. Now, the same results will repeat if the candidate selection process is not altered, to favour a local candidate. We will also support a local candidate with unity and fervour to ensure the JD(S) wins the current polls,” said the contenders.
They added that people who run real estate mafia should not be given tickets at any rate.
Alangur Shivashankar, who responded to the request, said the sense of unity among the members for the victory of the party was a positive move in the backdrop of the coming elections.