BBMP councillors, who are aspiring to contest the forthcoming Assembly elections, are likely to contest from the Karnataka Janata Party (KJP), if they are denied tickets by their respective parties.
A large number of councillors are planning to contest the Assembly polls. Many have been contacted by the KJP already, it is learnt.
Pulikeshinagar councillor Abdul Rakeeb Zakir of the Congress said he is an aspirant to contest elections from Sarvajnanagar Assembly constituency where 40 per cent voters are from the minority community. “I am optimistic that the Congress high command will give me a ticket. Otherwise, I will contest from either the JD (S) or the KJP. But I have not decided on joining these parties.”
According to sources, Housing Minister V Somanna is all set to return to Congress and may be given a ticket to contest from Rajajinagar constituency. This may spoil the prospects of senior Congress councillor M Nagaraj who is planning to contest from that constituency. However, Nagaraj, when contacted, said, he may be contesting from Mahalakshmi Layout.
Asked if he would join the KJP if he did not get a chance to contest from that constituency Nagaraj said, “I can react only if I am denied a ticket to contest from Mahalakshmi Layout.”
JP Garden councillor B R Nanjundappa, who was earlier with the JD(S), joined the BJP in 2010. “I will get a BJP ticket to contest from RR Nagar. Though I stay in Yeshwantpur, I am very popular at RR Nagar,” he said. He also confirmed that he received an offer from the KJP.
Interestingly, the present Rajarajeshwarinagar (RR Nagar) MLA M Srinivas is from the BJP. BBMP sources said that if Srinivas does not get a BJP ticket he may join the KJP with his councillor-son Venkatesh Babu.
According to sources, Chickpet MLA Hemachandra Sagar may join the KJP, but none of the councillors of his constituency will follow him, as most of them are from the Sangh Parivar background, including Sunkenahalli councillor P N Sadashiva and V V Puram councillor Anil Kumar.
Yeshwantpur councillor Munirathna said that he is an aspirant to contest on a Congress ticket from RR Nagar. He denied he will move to the BJP. “Why should I quit? the Congress to join the BJP. There are many people from the BJP and the KJP who want to join Congress,” he said.