SHIVAMOGGA: BJP and Congress leaders are upset over the reservation announced for 35 Zilla Panchayat seats and seven Taluk Panchayats in the district, by the Election Commission. Aspiring candidates of the BJP are approaching their MLAs and MP, to express discontent over the reservation for the ZP-TP constituencies.
The issue was first raised by the district Congress Committee SC wing president G Pallavi, who said that not one of the seven ZP constituencies was reserved for SC, in the reserved Shivamogga Rural assembly constituency. A request is being submitted to the Election Commission through the DC’s office.
Leader of SC/ST Federation Veerabhadrappa Poojar said reservation for SC/ ST has to be higher in local body elections. Both SCs and STs were socio-politically deprived, and require more reservation. Another leader of the SC/ST Federation Bhoja Naik said they will approach court to demand scientific reservation of seats.Many district and taluk BJP leaders have termed this reservation of seats as “unscientific”. A senior BJP leader said the Election Commission should have taken the district election office into confidence before announcing the reservation.
According to sources, Santhosh, son of MLC Ayanur Manjunath, Harikrishna, son of former MLC M B Bhanuprakash, wife of former MLA and Congress spokesperson Beluru Gopalakrishna, Dr Rajanandini Kagodu, daughter of senior Congress leader Kagodu Thimmappa and many former taluk panchayat leaders are aspiring to contest the seats.Several second-rung leaders are also keen to contest, for which they have already started lobbying with influential leaders within their parties.