BENGALURU: Many tainted leaders, including jailed former ministers Katta Subramanya Naidu and S N Krishnaiah Setty, have found a place in the BJP's second list of 82 candidates announced on Sunday. The list also includes Haratalu Halappa, who was acquitted of a rape case filed in 2009.
Katta Subramanya has been fielded from Shivajinagar constituency where he will take on Urban Development Minister Roshan Baig from Congress. Naidu was jailed on charges of a land scam involving his firm Itasca in 2011.
The charges against Naidu were that as a minister he knew about an industrial project of Karnataka Industrial Area Development Authority near Kempegowda International Airport and tried to make a windfall gain by entering into an agreement with the land losers.
Setty, the BJP candidate from Maluru, had to go to jail as he was a co-accused in a multi-crore land scam in 2011. He was acquitted later.
Halappa, who was accused of raping his friend's wife in Shivamogga in 2009, was acquitted due to lack of evidence. He has been given the ticket from Sagar constituency in Shivamogga brushing aside strong competition from Beluru Gopalakrishna, who has now raised a banner of revolt.
BJP national president Amit Shah, who recently denied any BJP connection with mining scam tainted former minister Janardhana Reddy, has rewarded Reddy's brother Somashekara Reddy a ticket from Ballari city. He was an accused in the cash-for-bail scam to get his jailed brother Janardhana released on bail.
The party has also given a ticket to MP Renukacharya, who was accused of sexually harassing a nurse when he was a minister in the Yeddyurappa's ministry. He is contesting from Honnali. The nurse withdrew the case later.