BANGALORE: The BJP on Friday announced its candidates for Legislative Council and Rajya Sabha elections to be held on June 10 and June 17, respectively.
BJP senior leader M Venkaiah Naidu and former MP from Shimoga Ayanur Manjunath will be party nominees for the RS polls from Karnataka Assembly.
Former minister V Somanna, former MP from Mysore C H Vijayashankar, BJP leader from Bagalkot Narayansa Bhandage and Ashwathnarayan from Bangalore will be fielded for the Legislative Council elections.
These names were finalised at a meeting of top brass of the state BJP at Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa's Dollars Colony residence on Friday.
Later in the evening, party's central election committee gave its stamp of approval to the list sent by the state unit.
The BJP has taken care to ensure representation to all major communities of the state.
While Somanna is a Lingayat, Vijayashankar hails from Kuruba community.
Ashwathnarayan is a Vokkaliga and Bhandage is from the backward classes.
COUNCIL NOMINATIONS
The party has nominated state BJP treasurer Lehar Singh Siroya and former MLA N Tippanna to the Upper House.
Governor HR Bharadwaj on Friday gave his assent to the government's proposal to nominate Tippanna and Singh.
Singh, besides being a treasurer of BJP state unit, is Yeddyurappa's trusted man.
He is credited with being Yeddyurappa's interface with the Party's central leadership.