Results of the bypolls to Kundgol and Chincholi Assembly seats will change everything politically in the State. The BJP will win these seats and it will push the party tally up in the Assembly. That will lead to a big political change, BJP leader and Arabhavi MLA Balachandra Jarkiholi said in Belagavi on Friday.
He was speaking after the unanimous election of Vivekrao Patil to the Belagavi Cooperative Milk Producers Societies Union. Mr. Vivekrao Patil is a follower of the former Minister and MLA Ramesh Jarkiholi who has indicated that he would quit the Congress and join the BJP.
“Some people are saying that Mr. Ramesh Jarkiholi is alone in his opposition to the Congress and that no other MLA will resign along with him. Whether he is alone or not will be known after the byelections,” Mr. Balachandra Jarkiholi said. He reiterated that State politics will undergo a major change after the bypolls.
“We have ensured that elections to the milk cooperatives were not based on party politics. We want the dairy to expand and improve the lives of farmers in the district. Amarnath Jarkiholi, Mr. Ramesh Jarkiholi’s son, has been elected unopposed as a director to the union. His work as director will help his future in the cooperative. We are willing to compromise with our political rivals in such elections. We will not compromise in MLA and MP elections,” Mr. Balachandra Jarkiholi said.
Mr. Ramesh Jarkiholi’s brother and political adversary Satish Jarkiholi is supposed to have helped the unanimous election of Mr. Vivekrao Patil and Mr. Amarnath Jarkiholi.
Mr. Balachandra Jarkiholi dismissed as unfounded the rumours that Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy had asked him to join the Janata Dal (Secular). “The Chief Minister has not made any offer to me to join the Janata Dal(S). I keep meeting him for speeding up development works in my constituency,” he said.
Earlier, Mr. Balachandra Jarkiholi met the 13 leaders elected as directors to the union at a hotel. Mr. Vivekrao Patil then left for the Karnataka Milk Federation office to file his nomination papers. Since he was the only one to file nomination papers, he was elected unopposed. This will be his second term as president of the union.
Meanwhile, Mr. Ramesh Jarkiholi met B.B. Hanji and Ravi Hanji, businessmen who are politically opposed to Mr. Satish Jarkiholi. Mr. Ramesh Jarkiholi arrived here from Gokak to wish Mr. Vivekrao Patil before his election. But once the directors left to reach the KMF to witness Mr. Vivekrao Patil filing his nomination papers, Mr. Ramesh Jarkiholi met the businessmen at the hotel. They run a manufactured sand (m-sand) unit in Yamakanamaradi from where Mr. Satish Jarkiholi has been winning the Assembly elections. They have openly worked against Mr. Satish Jarkiholi before the elections.
Mr. Ramesh Jarkiholi left here for Gokak without commenting on the meeting. The businessmen left the venue without speaking to media persons.