GADAG: The Haveri Lok Sabha constituency may see a change in candidates, though names have already been announced.
Congress is thinking of convincing minister HK Patil to contest from here after BJP announced former chief minister Basavaraj Bommai as its candidate. But there is also talk within party circles that another former chief minister Jagadish Shettar may be asked to contest from here, replacing Bommai, but local leaders do not have any official information on that yet.
Though Shettar was expected to be a breeze-in for the Belagavi constituency, recent developments have made BJP leaders rethink their strategy. Some local party leaders in Belagavi have started a “Go back Shettar” campaign and put up banners on some main roads of the city.
In Haveri, Congress candidate Anandswamy Gaddadevarmath has already started his campaign, but party leaders feel he may not be a strong contender against Bommai. That is why, Patil is being convinced to contest, party sources said. Both the parties are working out the caste equations and collecting ground survey reports from all taluks. Congress is confident of winning this time as the district has more number of MLAs from Haveri and Gadag districts. The legislators have assured the party top leaders that they would work to ensure the victory of the party candidate. The Haveri constituency, which is the BJP stronghold, has over 6.5 lakh Lingayats, three lakh minorities, three lakh Kurubas, three lakh Muslims and others.
A BJP leader, requesting anonymity, said, “People will vote for Bommai, but we don’t know about the candidature of Shettar from here. Since people vote for Modi in the Lok Sabha elections, our candidates are safe.”
Anil Patil, a Congress leader from Haveri, said, “We are now campaigning for Anandswamy. We are confident of winning. People are giving a positive response and they may want a change this time.”