BJP core panel recommends MLC ticket for Vijayendra

The Karnataka BJP core committee, which met on Saturday, is said to have recommended the candidature of party vice president B Y Vijayendra, former chief minister B S Yediyurappa’s son, for the upcoming Legislative Council elections.

Vijayendra’s name is among over a dozen other names that the core committee has discussed for seven Legislative Council seats for which elections will be held on June 3. Elections are necessary as seven MLCs are retiring on June 14.

It is learned that the core committee has shortlisted five names each from SC/ST, general, women and OBC quotas. They include former deputy chief minister Laxman Savadi (he is among the seven MLCs retiring), BJP general secretary Mahesh Tenginkai, party vice presidents M Rajendra and Nirmal Kumar Surana, party’s SC Morcha chief Chalavadi Narayanaswamy, former MLCs MB Bhanuprakash and Siddaraju and Mahila Morcha president Geetha Vivekananda.

The seven MLCs will be elected by MLAs. Going by the party position in the Assembly, the BJP can win four, the Congress two and JD(S) one. If Vijayendra gets the ticket and wins, it will mark the start of his maiden innings as a lawmaker. This will coincide with speculation that he may be made a minister. Yediyurappa’s other son B Y Raghavendra is already a Lok Sabha member representing Shimoga.

“The panel of names will be sent to the central election committee, which will finalise the tickets,” BJP national general secretary Arun Singh, who manages the party’s affairs in Karnataka, said.

Of the four Rajya Sabha seats from Karnataka that have polls on June 10, the BJP can win at least two and the Congress one. The core committee is also said to have discussed recommending the ticket to Union Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman for her re-election.

For the second seat, the names of outgoing Rajya Sabha member KC Ramamurthy, outgoing MLC Lehar Singh Siroya, Surana and entrepreneur Prakash Shetty are doing the rounds.

Speculation is also rife that the BJP and JD(S) may negotiate for the fourth seat. Or, the two parties could enter into an understanding for the June 3 Legislative Council polls.

Nothing about Cabinet expansion or reshuffle was discussed in the core committee meeting. “It’s the prerogative of the CM. He will take the right decision at the right time,” Singh said, adding that there is no confusion in the BJP on this matter.