BENGALURU: In a twist to dynastic politics, some senior BJP leaders in Karnataka seem to be taking retirement from electoral politics, in an attempt to build their children’s careers in mainstream politics. A few of them have sought tickets for their sons for the Assembly elections.
It started with former chief minister BS Yediyurappa announcing that he will not contest the elections and that his son BY Vijayendra will contest from Shikaripura assembly constituency in Shivamogga, which he was representing all these years. In the past week, Haladi Srinivas Shetty from Kundapura, Ravindranath from Davanagere and now minister MTB Nagaraj have sought retirement from electoral politics.
On Friday, Minister for Small Scale Industries MTB Nagaraj, who came to meet Yediyurappa at his residence, told reporters he will not be contesting polls. “I appeal to party leaders to give a ticket to my son Nitesh Purushottam for Hoskote,” he said. Nitesh is a former BBMP councilor. Nagaraj, who joined BJP after resigning from Hoskote assembly constituency, lost the by-polls to Sharath Bacchegowda in 2019.
Though the party has not made any rule of giving one ticket per family, a few veterans are voluntarily taking retirement for various reasons. “For our party, winnable candidates also matter. After Yediyurappa set an example of stepping down from electoral politics, we can only appeal to seniors to allow juniors to contest. It is natural that some leaders want their children to take their place, but it is up to the party's high command,” said a senior BJP leader on condition of anonymity. According to the sources, this time, many senior MLAs who have held office for four or five terms, may not get tickets.