Confident Congress not to accept Srinivas Gowda's support

B S Suryaprakash, S R Muraligowda, Shabir Pasha, K V Anasuyamma, Renukamma and C V Lokesh have withdrawn their nominations.

The five candidates in fray are, Nazeer Ahmed (Congress), Y Surendra (BJP), M Shivananda, S G Narayana Gowda and Venkata Reddy (Independents). Close on the heels of MLA Varthur Prakash announcing that Suryaprakash is not going to withdraw from the fray, Suryaprakash withdrew his nomination Varthur Prakash’s presence on Friday.

With this the condition laid by the legislators that K Srinivas Gowda should be expelled from the party has been put to rest.

Congress firm

The Congress leaders have taken a firm stand that the party does not need the support of former minister K Srinivas Gowda, who openly supported BJP in the previous Parliamentary elections.

District Congress committee president N S Bisse Gowda made this point clear at a meeting held on Friday at the residence of Union Minister K H Muniyappa. Shidlaghatta MLA V Muniyappa was present on the occasion.

At a press meet held later, Congress leaders expressed confidence of winning the election. “We are ready to go to polls without Srinivas Gowda’s support. The KPCC has retrieved the expulsion notice issued against 12 members alleging anti-party activities. Hence, all of them will be working for Congress. Even former Rural Block Congress President Begli Suryaprakash, who had filed his nomination, has been accepted back into the party fold and he will withdraw his nomination,” the leaders said.

The members, whose expulsion notice has been withdrawn, are Suryaprakash, P E Ramachandra, Atavulla, M Manjunath, Zameer Pasha, Yashodamma, Raghuram, Kusuma Ramachandra, Manjula Devi, S V Govindaraju, Shivamma, and CMC president K N Madhusudan.

The party district leaders expressed confidence that with all these members campaigning, Congress would definitely win.

3 crorepathis

Of the five candidates, who are in the fray for Legislative Council elections, three are crorepathis and one is a lakhpathi.  According to the disclosure during filing of nominations papers,  Nazeer Ahmed is the richest candidate. A BCom graduate from KGF, Nazeer at 50 gets Rs 3,85,462 as membership fee, and a  revenue of Rs 1.32 crore from various companies.

He also gets dividends from companies to the tune of Rs 1,38,41,500. He has cash of Rs 1 lakh and bank deposit of Rs 1,60,428. He pays a premium of Rs 4,89,539 towards insurance. He has shares worth Rs 3.55 crore and luxury items worth Rs 2.51 lakh. He owns land at Vittal in Dakshina Kannada, Hagadur village and a house in Bangalore worth Rs 80 lakh. His wife Nausath Ayesha Nazeer earns Rs12 lakh per annum.