Sumalatha says she is hopeful of Cong ticket

Sumalatha Ambareesh, wife of late actor turned politician M H Ambareesh, who is aspiring to make her political debut by contesting the upcoming Lok Sabha elections from Mandya, on Sunday said that she was hoping to contest on a Congress ticket.

Speaking to reporters during Ambareesh’s third month death ceremony at the Kanteerava Studio (where the actor was cremated), Sumalatha also said that she had paid no attention to the seat-sharing row between the Congress and the JD(S).

“The people of Mandya have made it apparent that they want to me contest. Ambareesh was in Congress all these years. Our friends and the people we know well are in the party. So I expect the ticket from Congress itself. I have, however, not lobbied for a ticket so far. I decided to contest only after the people of Mandya and Ambareesh’s fans demanded I do so. I will only listen to the people of the district. I have no strategies. I need no strategy. The love of the people has made me take such a call. I have no interest to play political games,” she added.

After remaining elusive about her entry into politics, Sumalatha made her plans public in the last few days. Not only has she been frequenting Mandya, she had also met Congress Legislature Party leader Siddaramaiah on February 20 and sought the ticket.

Siddaramaiah is yet to announce his party’s decision. The Congress is caught in a quandary as the Mandya Lok Sabha constituency has become a bone of contention with its alliance partner, JD(S).

Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy is keen on fielding his son and actor, Nikhil Kumar from Mandya. The local Congress workers and leaders have, however, been demanding that the party should not cede the constituency to the JD(S), which incidentally, has won all seven Assembly seats in the district.

In the event Sumalatha does not get the Congress ticket, she is likely to contest as an Independent, according to sources.