Amid dissatisfaction in BJP over Lok Sabha candidates, Yediyurappa said efforts are on to resolve the issues
Karnataka: The former chief minister said he will visit Davanagere and Belagavi today and March 27 to resolve the issues there.
“I am going to Davangere today and Belagavi tomorrow. We will sit there with our party workers and leaders and discuss and sort out the issues. In a way, there is no complication across the state,” Yediyurappa, who is also a member of the Congress, said. BJP’s Parliamentary Board and Central Election Committee said.
Speaking to reporters, he said, “Our expectation is that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, we have to win all 28 seats and we are working sincerely for this. I am confident that we will be successful in this.”
Yediyurappa on Monday met outgoing Davangere MP GM Siddheshwar, whose wife Gayatri is the BJP candidate from there.
Former party MLAs MP Renukacharya and SA Ravindranath are openly expressing their opposition to his candidature.
There is resentment within the party over the ticket given to former Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar in Belgaum (Belagavi) Lok Sabha constituency.
Many local party leaders are opposing his candidature as Shettar, who hails from Hubballi-Dharwad, has been given the ticket bypassing contenders in Belagavi district.
There is some dissatisfaction in several other constituencies like Chikkaballapur, Koppal, Shimoga, Haveri, Tumkur, Bidar, Raichur and Chitradurga.
On Monday, Yediyurappa and other senior BJP leaders spoke to Koppal’s sitting MP Karadi Sanganna, who had threatened to revolt if he was not given a ticket to contest the elections again. The party gave ticket to Dr. Basavaraj Kyavatar from Koppal.
A section of BJP workers has protested against the BJP’s decision to field former minister K Sudhakar from Chikkaballapur. They were demanding a ticket for Alok, son of Yelahanka MLA SR Vishwanath.
Yediyurappa had gone to Tumakuru last week to meet angry former minister JC Madhuswamy, who was upset over V Somanna being given the ticket.
In Bidar, BJP MLAs Prabhu Chauhan and Sharanu Salgar are unhappy with the party re-nominating Union Minister Bhagwant Khuba as its candidate despite their protests.
In Shivamogga, another veteran BJP leader KS Eshwarappa has announced his candidature as an independent candidate against Yediyurappa’s son and sitting MP BY Raghavendra. Eshwarappa has blamed Yediyurappa for the party denying ticket to his son KE Kantesh from Haveri and instead choosing former chief minister Basavaraj Bommai.
General elections for 28 seats in Karnataka will be held in two phases on April 26 and May 7.
