New Delhi: The BJP will announce the names of its Karnataka election candidates soon in two phases, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai said today. The party election committee met in Delhi over the weekend to finalise the names.
Several MLAs have been dropped and Congress turncoats chosen in the BJP's first list of candidates, sources have said.
Candidates for 140 seats were selected in the meeting of the BJP's central election meeting yesterday. BJP leader and former Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa said the first list with names of about 170 candidates is likely to be released tonight. Another meeting was held this morning at Home Minister Amit Shah's home to fine-tune the party's list.
All Congress legislators who switched to BJP in 2019, bringing down the Congress-Janata Dal Secular government, have been rewarded with election tickets, it is learnt. This may lead to a fierce pushback from within the BJP ranks ahead of what is being seen as a tough poll fight.
Chief Minister Basavaraj S Bommai will be contesting from Shiggaon seat, which he has held since 2008.
Former chief minister BS Yediyurappa's son BY Vijayendra is the party's pick from his father's seat Shikaripura. Mr Yediyurappa had earlier hinted that his son may contest against Siddaramaiah, Congress heavyweight and Leader of the Opposition in Assembly, in Varuna constituency. However, he later said Mr Vijayendra would contest from Shikaripura.
"There was a pressure on Vijayendra to contest from Varuna constituency but I decided that he should contest from Shikaripura because this was the constituency which gave me a political life, recognition and honour," Mr Yediyurappa said last week. The BJP veteran, an eight-time MLA from Shikaripura, announced his retirement from electoral politics this February.
Addressing the media last night, Chief Minister Bommai had confirmed that he will contest from Shiggaon. He had also said the BJP's list of candidates will be out in a day or two.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, BJP Chief JP Nadda, Chief Minister Bommai and Union Minister Pralhad Joshi attended the BJP election committee meeting in Delhi yesterday.
The Congress, which has released names of 166 candidates so far, took a swipe at the BJP last week, asking why it was "scared" to name its picks for the polls.
"I want to ask JP Nadda, why are you scared? Do JP Nadda, PM Modi, Amit Shah and CM Bommai think that announcement of seats will lead to issues in the party?" senior party leader Randeep Singh Surjewala had asked.
In a sharp counter, Chief Minister Bommai had said the Opposition party could not find candidates for many seats and got them from other parties.
The May 10 election in Karnataka is being seen as a tall challenge for the incumbent BJP owing to allegations of corruption and a leadership vacuum. The Congress, on the other hand, is battling infighting between factions led by its top leaders Siddaramaiah and state party chief DK Shivakumar. The Opposition party has been trying to put up a united front in its desperate push for victory in the southern state.