Aspirants meet KPCC chief for Hebbal ticket

Congressmen aspiring to contest the byelection to Hebbal Assembly constituency have begun intense lobbying to get the party ticket.

Muslim leaders of the party, including former union minister K Rahman Khan, Infrastructure Development Minister R Roshan Baig, C K Abdul Rahman Sharief and Rizwan Arshad on Tuesday met KPCC president G Parameshwara and urged him to give the ticket to a leader belonging to the minority community. As many as five Muslim leaders, including Sharief and Rizwan, are aspiring to contest the bypoll.

Besides, Independent MLC B A Suresh and Congress MLC H M Revanna, both of whom are also in the race, are learnt to have indulged in a heated argument on contesting the bypoll.

The incident took place when Suresh went to Revanna's residence and urged him to extend his cooperation for becoming the Congress candidate in the bypoll. Both are close followers of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.

Request turned down
Revanna is learnt to have curtly turned down Suresh's request and, in turn, suggested him to reconsider his decision to contest the bypoll. Suresh reportedly hit back saying that the party will decide as to who should contest the bypoll. 

The BJP has convened its core committee on Thursday to finalise its candidate for the Hebbal seat.

In the BJP, there is a divide among party leaders whether the ticket should be given to former’s minister Katta Subramanya Naidu’s family.

A section of  party city MLAs want Katta’s wife Lalitha or his daughter-in-law Sowmya Jagadish (former corportor Katta Jagadish’s wife) to be given the ticket.

Former police officer Abdul Azeem, who joined the BJP recently and party MLC Y Narayanaswamy have emerged as aspirants.