JD(S) candidate will contest from Mandya: Siddaramaiah

Coalition government’s co-ordination committee chairman Siddaramaiah said that JD(S) candidate will contest from Mandya Lok Sabha Constituency.

Speaking to media persons here at Hubballi airport on Tuesday, Siddaramaiah said that it is left to Sumalatha, wife of late Ambrish, to decide on contesting as an independent candidate in the ensuing Lok Sabha elections, as Congress cannot claim for Mandya seat being currently represented by JD(S) candidate.

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The seat has become bone of contention for the coalition partners-- JD(S) and Congress-- as ticket aspirants of both the parties were adamant to contest from the same seat.

JD(S) is expected to field Nikhil Kumaraswamy, son of chief minister H D Kumaraswamy. While Sumalatha, whose late husband had represented the seat earlier on Congress ticket wanted to contest this seat on sympathy votes.

The seating sharing talks have not completed yet, he said and added that the process is expected to complete in next three-four days. The party could not seek Mandya seat as per the coalition agreement, he clarified.

Former chief minister Siddaramaiah said that as per their internal survey the coalition partners are expected to win more than 20 seats.

MLA resignation

Siddaramaiah said that assembly speaker may not accept Chincholi MLA Umesh Jadhav ’s resignations as his case would come under anti-party defection law. Umesh had contested on a Congress seat and was two time MLA from the same party. Now, he wants to jump the boat to BJP after he was lured by BJP under its ‘operation Kamala’.

This attracts anti-party defection law. And the speaker may not accept his resignation, he said.

He also said that he has petitioned with the speaker against four MLAs -- Ramesh Jarkiholi, Jadhav, Narendra and Mahesh Kamtahalli-- to disqualify them under anti-party defection law, as all of them are involved in anti-party activities.

“I don’t have proof, but there is talk among people that Jadhav has been ‘purchased’ by BJP under horse trade for more than 25-30 crore,” he said.