Hubballi-Dharwad central seat has at least 10 Congress aspirants

HUBBALLI: As parties gear up for the assembly elections, lobbying for the Congress ticket has intensified in the Hubballi-Dharwad Central constituency.
More than 10 candidates have applied for the ticket, which has now made it more challenging for the party to choose a winnable name.
The Hubballi-Dharwad Central constituency is represented by former chief minister Jagadish Shettar.
Rajat Ullagaddimath, Anil Kumar Patil, president of the Dharwad district rural Congress, former state youth Congress preaident Sadanand Dhanganavar, Satish Meharwade of the SSK community, Girish Gadigeppagoudar a follower of Siddaramaiah, Anjuman president Mohammed Yusuf Savanur, Saroja Hugar of Seva Dal, Niranjan Hiremath, Mehaboob Pasha, Farooq Abunavar and others are in the race for the ticket.
Ullagaddimath, who is the Vidyanagar block Congress president, said that because of anti-incumbency, this time more workers have applied for tickets. "I believe the party will take an appropriate decision and issue the ticket," he said.
He also said that since 2008 he was working for the Congress as an NSUI leader. Later, he was respnsible for the Vidyanagar block Congress during the HDMC elections and of 12 wards in the block. The Congress won seven wards. "The party has not given any assurance of a ticket," he said.
Anil Kumar Patil, a former mayor, said that till party high command announces the name, everyone is just an aspirant. If anyone claims to be the official candidate, that is wrong, he said. The party will issue a ticket after analysing winnability and other aspects, he said.
"I served as a mayor successfully during Covid and after Covid and worked hard and tried to be a family member of everyone who had been through bad times," he said.
According to sources, the Janata Dal (S), which is trying to strengthen the party has approached SSK community leader Satish Meharwade, who is also follower of Congress president DK Shivakumar.
Talk is that JD(S) president CM Ibrahim approached Meharwade.