The State Congress leaders on Saturday shortlisted names of Channaraj Hattiholi, brother of Belgaum Rural MLA Laxmi Hebbalkar; KPCC working president Satish Jarkiholi, and former Minister and ex-MP Prakash Hukkeri for bypoll to the Belagavi Lok Sabha constituency.
The bypoll was necessitated following the death of Minister of State for Railways Suresh Angadi, who died of COVID-19.
In Basavakalyan
The party shortlisted names of Vijay Singh, MLC and son of former Chief Minister the late N. Dharam Singh, and Mallamma, wife of deceased MLA Narayan Rao, for the Basavakalyan Legislative Assembly constituency. Rao too succumbed to COVID-19.
In Maski, Congress is expected to field Basanagouda Turvihal, who switched over to Congress from the Bharatiya Janata Party. In the 2018 Assembly polls, Mr. Turvihal, who contested on BJP ticket, lost to the then Congress candidate Prathapgouda Patil by a slender margin.
Mr. Patil later joined the BJP and this has necessitated bypoll.
KPCC president D.K. Shivakumar, who chaired a meeting of the party leaders, said the shortlisted names would be officially announced after the Belagavi divisional-level meeting in Hubballi on January 11. Finally, the party high command will select one of the candidates.
Calendar of events
The Election Commission of India is expected to announce the calendar of events for holding elections to two Assembly segments and one Lok Sabha seat.
Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly Siddaramaiah, MP Mallikarjun Kharge, KPCC working presidents Satish Jarkiholi and Saleem Ahmed, MLAs Laxmi Hebbalkar and Mahantesh Kaujalagi attended a meeting and shortlisted the names, sources in the Congress said.
BJP yet to announce
The BJP has not yet decided the candidate for the bypoll.
The BJP government has formed the Maratha Development Corporation and sanctioned ₹50 crore to the body, apparently with an eye on the community’s votes in the byelections.
A couple of days ago, Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa also laid the foundation stone for “New Anubhava Mantapa” at Basavakalyan, the pilgrim centre for Lingayats, in view of the impending bypoll. Lingayats, the community to which Mr. Yediyurappa belongs, is electorally powerful in the region.