Now, magic number for B'luru mayor poll is 131

The number game for the posts of mayor and deputy mayor for Namma Bengaluru has now changed with the electoral college comprising 260 voters, according to the list prepared by the BBMP council secretariat.

No political party enjoys a clear majority in the electoral college, which includes MLAs, MLCs and Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha members who are voters in the BBMP area, in addition to 198 corporators.

List of voters

As per the list submitted by the BBMP council secretariat (see box) to Regional Commissioner M V Jayanthi, the BJP has 126 voters, the Congress has 101 voters, and the Janata Dal (Secular) has 21 voters. Besides, there are 12 Independents, of whom seven are corporators, two are MLCs and three are Rajya Sabha members.

Besides 28 MLAs from the City, including the Anekal constituency, the MLCs who enjoy voting rights are Jaggesh, Lehar Singh Siroya, Ashwath Narayana, V Somanna, B J Puttaswamy, D S Veeraiah, Vimala Gowda, Ramachandra Gowda and Tara Anuradha (all BJP); R V Venkatesh, M R Seetharam, K Govindaraj, V S Ugrappa, Dr Jaimala, H M Revanna, B S Suresh (all Congress); M Srinivas, T A Sharavana and Puttanna (all JD-S) and Raghu Achar and D U Mallikarjuna (Independents).

Rajya Sabha members M Venkaiah Naidu (BJP), Kupendra Reddy (JD-S); B K Hari Prasad, Rajiv Gowda, K Rahman Khan (Congress) and Vijay Mallya, Rajiv Chandrashekhar and B Jayashree (Independents) are also eligible to vote. Lok Sabha members Ananth Kumar, D V Sadanand Gowda and P C Mohan (BJP), and D K Suresh and M Veerappa Moily (both Congress), are also eligible to vote.

BJP plans petition

The BJP is also planning to file a petition before the Karnataka High Court questioning the right of legislators and MPs to participate and vote in meetings of the BBMP Council.
The August 26 high court order that the jurisdictional MLA and MP have no right to vote in a no-confidence motion against the president and vice-president of the Basavakalyan municipal council has prompted the BJP to mull over the move.