Ahead of Legislative Council polls, JD(S) candidate from West Graduates Constituency quits fray

With less than a week left for Legislative Council elections from West Graduates constituency, JD(S) candidate Shivashankar Kallur has retired from the poll fray, and the party has announced support for independent candidate Basavaraj Gurikar.

The JD(S) had announced the candidature of Kallur almost one year back. The party has now decided to retire its candidate from the fray, and has extended support to Gurikar, who also headed the primary school teachers' association.

"Kallur could not campaign in recent days due to death of a member of his family. Other leaders of the party also could not campaign properly due to communication gap. To avoid setback for the party and to maintain distance from BJP and Congress, the party has decided to support Gurikar, in consultation with the leaders of four districts in the constituency," said JD(S) MLC Basavaraj Horatti.

Kallur noted that he would abide by the decision of the party.

Basavaraj Gurikar said, "JD(S) has extended unconditional support to me, and it has enhanced my confidence about being victorious in polls".

MLC retiree S V Sankanur is the BJP candidate, while R M Kuberappa has contested from the Congress in this constituency.