BENGALURU, BELAGAVI: Keen to be the first off the block in preparations for the 2023 Assembly elections, the Congress in Karnataka is planning to announce its candidates at least a year ahead of the polls, especially in constituencies where it lost in 2018. In some constituencies, aspirants have already begun groundwork hoping to find their names on the party’s candidate list.
The three main political parties — the BJP, the Congress and the JDS — are gearing up to face the upcoming election season. A number of elections, including taluk and zilla panchayat polls, bypolls to Sindagi and Hangal Assembly segments, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) elections and the MLC elections are scheduled in the months ahead.
A senior Congress leader, who did not want to be identified, admitted that it was not easy for the party to win elections in the current scenario. “We are preparing to win as many seats as possible in the taluk and panchayat polls. We also aim to win the two bypolls and Council polls. We will announce our candidate list for the 2023 Assembly elections in 2022, especially in seats currently represented by non-Congress legislators. It is a challenging task for us,’’ the Congress leader said.
Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) working president Saleem Ahmed said that announcing candidates well in advance will give the party enough time to understand the pulse of the constituency and the voters. He said that the ensuing taluk and zilla panchayat elections are crucial for the party. “At present, of the 25 MLCs elected by panchayat members, 14 are from the Congress. Our aim is to not just retain them, but also win more seats in the Upper House,’’ he said.
According to another KPCC working president, Satish Jarkiholi, the issue of announcement of party candidates a year ahead of the next election in the state is being already discussed at various party platforms. Jarkiholi said such a step will also help overcome intra-party tussle and differences between
the leaders. “The top party leadership is aware of the issue and hopefully, a final shape would be given to
it soon,” he added.