BANGALORE: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and KPCC president G Parameshwara will meet Congress supremo Sonia Gandhi on Wednesday to finalise party candidates for the biennial elections to the Legislative Council and Rajya Sabha to be held in the third week of June.
Seven seats are vacant in the Council, while four can be elected to the Rajya Sabha.
Of these, the Congress with its strength of 121 members (excluding Speaker Kagodu Thimmappa) can get four of its candidates elected to the Council, while two from the party can enter the Rajya Sabha. Sources in the Congress told Express that names of former chief minister S M Krishna and AICC general secretary B K Hariprasad have been finalised for the Rajya Sabha.
For the Council, Parameshwara, who is set to be inducted in Siddaramaiah’s cabinet, is likely to get elected. Former BBMP mayor M Ramachandrappa is also being considered. Ramachandrappa is being pushed by Hariprasad as well as the CM. Similarly, the name of K P Nanjundi is doing the rounds for the Council. He is said to be backed by former Union minister Oscar Fernandes.
Former ministers H M Revanna and Rani Satish, besides Congress women wing president Manjula Naidu are also making efforts.
For the nomination slots, actors Bhavana, Jayamala and Bhavya are also lobbying, while Sreepad Renu, former Ranaji cricket player and grandson of former CM Kengal Hanumanthaia, is also trying his luck under the sports quota. The Congress has already nominated Abdul Jabbar in place of Mumtaz Ali Khan who resigned. Jabbar’s term will end in June and he is likely to be renominated. A few journalists are also trying to get nominated to the Upper House.
Meanwhile, the JD(S) has decided not to field its candidates for the Rajya Sabha and instead support a real estate developer Kupendra Reddy. He is also likely to get additional votes from the Congress. Each candidate needs to get a minimum of 45 votes to get elected to the Rajya Sahba.
The JD(S) has just 40 votes while the Congress after electing two members will have an extra 31 votes.
Similarly, the JD(S) is said to have decided to support BJP candidate in the Legislative Council. With each candidate in the Council required to get at least 31 votes, the JD(S) will have nine votes extra. These will be transferred to the BJP’s second candidate.
The saffron party has already finalised former deputy CM K S Eshwarappa as its candidate. The second candidate is said to be another real estate developer Mallikharjun, who is strongly backed by former deputy CM R Ashoka and Union Fertiliser Minister H N Ananth Kumar.
The BJP has 43 votes and can elect one candidate. For the second candidate, the party needs an additional 19 votes. Interestingly, the JD(S) has not even decided its first candidate to the Council. The elections will be held on June 19.
CM to Meet PM
Bangalore: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah will meet PM Narendra Modi on Wednesday. This will be his first meeting after Modi became the PM. Sources said, Siddaramaiah will discuss pending Railway and Energy projects with Modi.