BENGALURU: The battle for the Mysuru-Kodagu Parliamentary seat may turn the pages of history if the BJP decides to replace the incumbent MP, Pratap Simha, with the scion of the erstwhile Mysuru Royal family Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. In such an eventuality, the Congress may field Suraj Hegde, the grandson of former chief minister Devraj Urs from the constituency, informed sources told The New Indian Express.
Hegde is vice-president of Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC), vice-chairman of the Guarantee Implementation Authority, Karnataka, and a member of the Indian National Congress election screening committee for Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Goa, and Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
According to BJP sources, the party may drop Simha - a two-time MP- because of various reasons, including the controversy around the recent Parliament security breach.
“The Congress is waiting for the BJP to roll out its second list and if they announce Yaduveer’s name from the Mysuru-Kodagu seat then they may field Hegde against him. The Congress has also been considering names of Vokkaliga candidates-- party spokesperson M Lakshmana and DCC president Vijaykumar for the Mysuru-Kodagu seat.
Hegde’s name was also on the list but he is said to have gained currency after Wadiyar’s name cropped up from the other side,” said sources. If Hegde contests against Yaduveer, it would bring back the reminiscences of a 35-year-old history, when the former’s aunt and the daughter of Urs, Late Chandraprabha Urs won against the then scion of the erstwhile Mysuru royal family, Late Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Wadiyar, who had contested on a BJP ticket in 1991 from the Mysore-Kodagu constituency. She had, however, lost the elections in 1994.
The Congress released its second list of 43 candidates on Tuesday for Assam, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, and Daman & Diu.
The BJP’s Central Election Committee (CEC) held its second meeting on Monday to decide on the second list of candidates for the 99 seats of Karnataka, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Telangana, and Chandigarh.