Karnataka’s ruling Congress on Sunday declared 218 candidates for the May 12 assembly elections, withholding names for remaining six seats of the 224-member house.

According to Congress General Secretary Mukul Wasnik, who released the list in the national capital, the candidates were selected by the party’s Central Election Committee from the names its screening committee recommended after a two-day meeting in New Delhi on April 9-10.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, 69, will contest from Chamundeshwari in Mysuru, where he had contested seven times since 1983 and won five times.

Though he was re-elected from the adjacent Varuna seat in Mysuru district in the May 2013 assembly polls, the party high command has agreed to field his son Yatindra from his home constituency this time.

Contrary to media reports, Siddaramaiah will not contest from any other constituency, especially Badami in Bagalkot district as speculated, with the party fielding Devraj Patil from it.

Party’s state unit President G. Parameshwara will contest from Korategere in Tumakuru district from where he lost in the last assembly poll. State Working President Dinesh Gundu Rao will fight from Gandhinagar in Bengaluru.

Among the other prominent candidates are Ministers K.J. George, Roshan Baig, Ramalinga Reddy and Krishna Byre Gowda from the seats they represent in the 14th outgoing legislative assembly from Bengaluru.

Bengaluru Mayor G. Sampathraj will contest from C.V Raman Nagar in the city and former Mayor G. Padmavathi from Rajajinagar suburb.

The party has given tickets to 15 women candidates, including Women and Child Welfare Minster Umashree from Tardal, Lakshmi Ravindra Hebbalkar from Belgaum Rural, Anjali Nimbalkar from Khanapur, Soumya R. from Jayanagar and Sushma Rajgopal Reddy from Bommanahalli.

Other women nominees are Kirtana Rudra Gowda from Belur, Shakunthala T. Shetty from Puttur, M.C. Mohan Kumari from Gundlupet,, K. Fatima from Gulbarga North, Motamma from Mudigere, Vani Krishnareddy from Chintamani, Roopa Sasidhar from Kolar Gold Field, Sharada Mohan Shetty from Kumta and A.L. Pushpa from Jagalur.

The party is yet to name candidates for Shantinagar segment in Bengaluru Central, Kittar, Nagthan, Sindgi, Raichur and Melukote.

The Congress returned to power after a decade in 2013, winning 122 seats and Siddaramaiah breaking a 40-year-old record to complete the five-year term as Chief Minister.

The opposition BJP released its first list of 72 candidates on April 8, while Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) named 126 nominees on March 27.

Vote count is on May 15.

(IANS)

Tabu Gundu Rao, wife of minister Dinesh Gundu Rao lashed out at Mysuru BJP MP Pratap Simha for dragging her into a controversy and said that he should follow the principles of Kuvempu’s philosophy instead of ‘sowing the seeds of ill will in the society’.

On Saturday, April 14 Gundu Rao during a candlelight protest to condemn the Katua rape had allegedly asked the people of Karnataka to thrash Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath with chappals accusing him of shielding the rape-accused BJP MLA.

On Sunday, the BJP MP Pratap Simha took to social media and criticized the Congress minister for using offensive words against Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath. “If Gundu Rao had used the same words against a Mulla or a Maulvi, his Begum (wife) Tabu would do the same thing (thrash with chappals) to him. If Mr Rao does not know how to control his tongue, we may have to teach him a lesson,” he said.

Taking strong objection for dragging her into the controversy, Tabu posted on Facebook, “I am deeply hurt and aggrieved by the derogatory and objectionable reference to me by the honorable MP of Mysuru, Mr Pratap Simha, in a video clip being circulated on social media and regional television networks (sic).”

“If Mr Simha is anguished by a statement made by my husband Mr Dinesh Gundu Rao in his capacity as the working president of the Congress, the MP is free to join issue with him, but to drag the womenfolk of the household into the controversy smacks of cowardice,” she said.

She added that the words by the BJP MP exposed his communal and narrow mindset. “The MP’s reference to me as ‘Begum Tabu’ only exposes his communal and narrow mindset. It is no secret that I am a Muslim and am married to a Brahmin. We have been happily married for over two decades symbolizing India’s unity in diversity.”

“As the honourable MP hails from Mysuru, I would urge him to follow poet laureate Kuvempu’s Vishwa Manava (Universal Brotherhood) philosophy instead of sowing the seeds of ill will in the society,” she added.

However, he apologized day a after the BJP leaders protested against him and complained to the Election Commission.

JD(S) state president H D Kumaraswamy, on Saturday, thrashed at the Congress party and said that the JD(S) will win 100 seats and the Congress will get just 40 in the upcoming Assembly election. The JD(S) will be the ‘king’ and not ‘kingmaker’, he said.

Kumaraswamy was addressing the media, subsequent to paying tributes to the statue of B R Ambedkar before the Town Hall, here, to stamp Ambedkar Jayanti.

Because of the election survey directed by a media house, as of late, Kumaraswamy said that media poll to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Dinesh Amin Mattu, has worked in the overview. “I know how he (Mattu) affected the overview. I have each record of it. As indicated by the survey, while the Congress is relied upon to win 90-101 seats, the BJP may win 78-86 seats, and JD(S) is required to win 34-43 seats. JD(S) will assume the part of kingmaker in the state,” he said.

Kumaraswamy said that public have chosen to make us the king and not kingmakers. In the 2004 decisions, the then study had anticipated that the JD(S) will win only two seats. In any case, we won 52 Assembly seats. Contrasted with 2004, the party is considerably more grounded,” Kumaraswamy said.

BJP leaders held a meeting with the Central Election Committee to finalize the list of candidates at New Delhi on Sunday.

It has finalized the names of 80 candidates. The list is most likely to be out today.

It has been reported that, some of the Congress leaders who were deprived of ticket have allegedly contacted the BJP party. V R Sudarshan from Kolar and Prasanna Kumar from Pulakeshinagar here are said to have contacted the BJP party to gain ticket from them.

Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti of northern Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir on Sunday accepted the resignations of two controversial BJP ministers, who had participated in a rally in support of the people arrested in connection with the rape and murder of an eight-year-old Muslim girl, officials said.

The resignations of Lal Singh and Chander Prakash Ganga were received from Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) state chief Sat Sharma this morning which were immediately accepted and forwarded to Governor N N Vohra for completing the procedural formalities, they said.

With these resignations, the number of ministers in the state government has come down to 22, including nine from the BJP. There are three vacancies in the council of ministers as the Mehbooba’s PDP had last month removed its finance minister Haseeb Drabu unceremoniously, they said.

BJP general secretary Ram Madhav, who had held consultations with legislators of the party in Jammu on Saturday, had announced the resignations would be forwarded for further action thereby ending a simmering political crisis in the state.

Both Ganga and Singh had participated in a rally on March 1 after the crime branch of Jammu and Kashmir Police had arrested the nephew of a caretaker of a ‘Devisthan’ (temple) in connection with the kidnapping and rape of the little girl.

During investigation, the police arrested the caretaker and alleged he was the mastermind behind the kidnapping, rape and killing of the girl from a nomadic tribe in Kathua district of the state. The police claimed the motive behind the crime was to terrify the nomadic community and drive it out of the village.

The girl was kidnapped on January 10 and her body was found on January 17. During investigation, the crime branch alleged she was drugged and repeatedly raped before being crushed to death with stones.

Both the ministers had maintained on Saturday that they had been sent by the party to Kathua to understand the ground situation. The two ministers were present in the rally in support of the rape-accused where the tricolour was also waved.

Madhav had on Saturday said, “That is why they had to resign. During my visit last month here, I made it clear to everyone that in this matter no one speaks and let us allow the investigations to complete. “Certain amount of discretion should have been maintained. Certainly, there was a lack of discretion. Sometimes a lack of discretion does not tantamount of any guilt…that has led to certain misconceptions about them (two ministers) also, so they decided they will quit as ministers,” he had responded, when asked about the two ministers having termed the action of the crime branch as “jungle raj” and warned police from arresting anyone.

A much-relieved Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for defusing the situation and said the unfortunate incident had brought the people of the state and the rest of the country “together”. She said a sense of justice had been reinforced in the state and urged “New Delhi to wake up to the Kashmir cauldron”.

Both the alliance partners — the BJP and the PDP — had separate legislature party meetings in Srinagar and Jammu on Saturday to discuss the situation arising out of the polarisation in the state over the rape-cum-murder of the girl.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Congress president Rahul Gandhi, other politicians paid tribute to Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar on this birthday

On the occasion of Ambedkar Jayanti, the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) politicians, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party chief Amit Shah, made a beeline to pay tributes to the social icon, amid criticism by the Opposition. The national capital witnessed protests from the Dalits when some people from the community on Saturday “cleansed” B R Ambedkar’s statue soon after Union Minister Maneka Gandhi and BJP leaders paid floral tributes to Ambedkar. Members of the Dalit community claimed that the presence of BJP leaders had ‘polluted’ the atmosphere.

A group of Sikhs too protested against alleged atrocities perpetrated against minority communities in India during the commemoration of Babasaheb Ambedkar’s 127th birth anniversary at the United Nation’s headquarters.

The Narendra Modi-led govt and BJP, on the other hand are trying to reached out to Dalits in the aftermath of their violent protests asserting that at every juncture they stand “shoulder to shoulder” with the community and accused the Congress of fuelling tension in the society with an eye on elections.

Earlier this month, Modi had blasted opposition parties for politicising Ambedkar’s legacy, blaming the previous governments for not paying due respects to the Dalit icon. Continuing on that note, he said, “After Atal Ji’s government, when Congress came to power, they closed the files related to this project, when we were given a chance to serve people in 2014 we dug out the files and worked on it.”

In a tit-for-tat, Congress accused the BJP of ‘eroding’ the legacy of Baba Saheb Ambedkar and said Prime Minister Narendra Modi was merely paying him lip service as his party and the RSS have an ‘anti-Dalit mindset’. Congress leader Selja charged the prime minister with doing politics over the legacy of the Dalit icon.

Ambedkar Jayanti is celebrated on April 14 across the nation to remember the Father of the Constitution of India. Popularly known as Babasaheb, Ambedkar was an Indian jurist, economist, politician and social reformer who inspired the Dalit Buddhist Movement. He campaigned against social discrimination against untouchables and also supported the rights of women and labourers.

Anupama Shenoy, Secretary General of Bharathiya Janashakti Congress, has confirmed that she will be contesting from the Kaup legislative assembly constituency in the upcoming state elections.

She confirmed her contest, speaking to the press at a press conference on Friday, April 13th. “Since Kaup is my native constituency, I will not be contesting from Bellary or any other constituency,” she affirmed.

“My party was registered on February 18 and ladies finger is allotted by the election commission as our symbol. Around 80 people have shown their interest to contest from my party in the state elections. The list is being scrutinized. We will definitely contest in 30 constituencies. I have formed Bharathiya Janashakti Congress party with the intention of building a political party and is not limited the forthcoming elections,” informed Shenoy.

“Anyone with no criminal background can join our party. That aspirant should be able to read and write in Kannada language. We will only charge Rs. 20 as membership fee from them and nothing else. If anyone willing to contest with a mindset to fight for the rights of people, will be given ticket in Udupi constituency,” she added.

After criticizing Congress government for adopting a pro-Kannada approach to gain an edge in the upcoming polls, BJP has now suddenly taken a u-turn and become Kannada-centric.

From tweeting in Kannada to paying tribute to Kannada icons, BJP leaders seem to be playing the Kannada card, as they have realized that ignoring Kannada in Karnataka could create a negative impact in the upcoming polls.

BJP national president Amit Shah during his latest poll tour in Karnataka has visited Kumaravyasa’s birthplace, D R Bendre’s house, freedom fighters Sangolli Rayanna and Kittur Rani Chennamma memorials in the last two days. Shah during his Shivamoga visit took a helicopter ride to Kuppalli, the birthplace of Kannada poet Kuvepmu during his visit.

Shah has also tweeted a Kannada poem of one of the all-time greats of Kannada literature, D R Bendre who was from Dharwad. Even party election in-charge, ministers Piyul Goel and Prakash Javadekar have also started tweeting in Kannada.

Former chief minister Jagadish Shettar also displayed his love for Kannada and its literature by tweeting a few lines from Kumaravyasa’s ‘Mahabharatha’.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has managed to utter a few words in Kannada and also paid tributes to Kannada icons in his speeches.

Sources reveal that BJP’s pro-Kannada approach is to convince people that they are not an anti-Kannada party. The BJP earlier had blamed Congress for dividing Karnataka on language lines and sentiments, when the state had objected the centre’s imposition of Hindi rule. Some of its leaders on social media handles had criticized activists who were demanding the removal of Hindi signboards from Bengaluru Metro.

The BJP had also opposed Siddaramaiah government’s demand of Kannada flag for the state.

Chief minister Siddaramaiah called BJP’s new found love for Kannada as an election gimmick and said that the people can see through it.

“Did they not oppose the Kannada flag?” he questioned and added that the state is aware that BJP and RSS has always distanced itself from regional languages, cultures and diversity. “No one will believe them. They are good at fooling people but they have been exposed this time,” he added.

Meanwhile, JD(S) state chief H D Kumaraswamy has attacked both the Congress and BJP for using Kannada for the votes. “Both are national parties and will forget Kannada after the elections. Kannadigas should be careful about Delhi people,” he told media.

State secretary of women Congress Pratibha Kulai filed a criminal case against former chief minster and senior BJP leader Yeddyurappa and others on Friday, April 13 at second JMFC court here for using her photo in a chargesheet published by BJP against state government.

B S Yeddyurappa, Shobha Karandlaje Union minister Ravishankar Prasad, publisher Narasimha Murthy, printer Dinesh Hegde are named in the complaint as accused.
As per the complaint, the accused used a photo of Pratibha Kulai in a chargesheet brought out by BJP against the government led by Siddaramaiah.
The complaint was filed for the offences under section 34, 499 and 500 of Indian penal code, informed Kulai.

The case will come up on April 19 for hearing.