BJP has fielded Sadananda Gowda, sitting MP from Bengaluru North. It is said that JDS does not have a strong candidate to field against Sadananda Gowda and that is why the party has given up Bengaluru North seat to the Congress.
Bengaluru: Seat-sharing arrangement between the JD(S) and the Congress has become a big headache for the coalition government. Currently, JD(S) that had demanded eight seats in Karnataka has returned Bengaluru North to the Congress.
Though Congress has welcomed the move and claimed it as goodwill from the JD(S) leadership, there are speculations that the JD(S) has no strong candidate to field against BJP's Sadanada Gowda.
"INC India is thankful to Shri HD Deev Gowda ji and the JD(S) for their kind gesture of giving back the Bengaluru North Lok Sabha seat to the Congress. Together let us reclaim democracy," stated the tweet made by AICC general secretary and in-charge of Karnataka, KC Venugopal.
Earlier, it was speculated that JD(S) chief Deve Gowda would contest from Bengaluru North. But as Gowda chose Tumakuru, JD(S) does not have any strong candidate to contest form Bengaluru North against Sadanada Gowda.
Bengaluru North is a Vokkaliga belt and Sadanada Gowda also belongs to the same community. However, Deve Gowda is also a Vokkaliga, and yet his party does not have a strong Vokkaliga candidate for Bengaluru North.
Taking a dig at the JD(S) fielding Deve Gowda's grandsons Nikhil Kumaraswamy from Mandya and Prajwal Revanna from Hassan, Sadananda Gowda had said that for Deve Gowda, Vokkaliga is a person from his family alone.
Meanwhile, Deve Gowda created a storm by announcing his candidature form Tumakuru, disappointing Congress MP Muddahanumegowda. Now Muddahanumegowda is threatening to contest as a rebel, putting Congress in a fix.
Efforts of Congress leaders to convince Muddahanumegowda are in vain. Now, the Congress is trying to coax Muddahanumegowda (who is also a Vokkaliga) to contest from Bengaluru North.
If Muddahanumegowda is still adamant on contesting from Tumakuru, then there are two main Congress aspirants waiting to contest from Bengaluru North - Krishna Byre Gowda and BL Shankar.
In the 2014 elections, Sadananda Gowda had defeated Congress candidate C Narayana Swamy with over a margin of 2,29,000 votes.
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