Cong forms panel to screen candidates for Palike polls

 The State Congress on Saturday decided to set up a screening committee to shortlist applications for party tickets to contest the BBMP elections.

The committee will be headed by KPCC chief G Parameshwara and comprises Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and ministers from Bengaluru. A decision to this effect was taken at a meeting of senior party leaders, chaired by Siddaramaiah. Senior leaders like C K Jaffer Sharief, B K Hariprasad, Margaret Alva and C M Ibrahim attended the meeting held at Congress Bhavan on Race Course Road.

The party sources said that so far 1,300 applications have been issued to the aspirants and about 600 of them have submitted the filled-in applications.

The forms will be sent to the respective block Congress offices for scrutiny to be done based on the party’s guidelines. The screening committee will later shortlist names of candidates, the sources said.

The party has decided to start issuing ‘B’ forms to the candidates from August 6, the sources said.

Leaders like Hariprasad and Sharief said that the ticket should be given to loyal party workers only. Those facing corruption charges should be kept away. The leaders should shun all differences and fight the polls unitedly, they are learnt to have suggested.

However, former chief minister S M Krishna kept off the meeting. Parameshwara had personally invited Krishna to the meeting and urged him to advise the party on facing the elections.

Siddaramaiah is learnt to have apprised the leaders about steps taken by the government to prevent farmers from committing suicide.