As bypolls near, Congress & BJP scramble for winnable faces

Bengaluru: Governing Congress and principal opposition BJP are gearing up for bypolls to two assembly seats — Davanagere South and Bagalkot — with one seeking to consolidate its hold and the other determined to secure bragging rights. Elections to the two seats are expected to be announced alongside polls in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Assam and West Bengal.Congress holds both seats and the governing party is treating the contests as a must-win, while BJP state president BY Vijayendra is keen to upset the apple cart and assert his leadership.
Congress plans to constitute two panels of ministers to oversee electioneering in the two constituencies, while BJP's state core committee has begun the process of shortlisting candidates."We'll assign responsibilities to ministers and they will work in two groups," said GC Chandrashekhar, Congress state working president. "Each team will comprise six ministers and they will initially shortlist candidates and later oversee electioneering, including campaigning."CN Ashwath Narayan, MLA and BJP core committee member, said his party is already working on drawing up a shortlist of potential candidates. "Going by ground reports, we have a clear chance of winning both seats," he said. "We will send the shortlist well before the announcement of bypolls and the parliamentary board will finalise candidates."In Davanagere South, Congress faces competing claims for the ticket. Muslims want a candidate from their community, while the family of late MLA Shamanur Shivashankarappa is seeking to field a member to fill the vacancy created by his death last Dec. Another section is pitching for a candidate from the Ahinda bloc (minorities, backward classes and Dalits), which together accounts for nearly 80% of the 2.3 lakh electorate.Those backing an Ahinda candidate have flagged concentration of representation within the Shamanur family. Shivashankarappa's son SS Mallikarjun represents Davanagere North and is horticulture minister, while his wife Prabha Mallikarjun is Davanagere Lok Sabha MP."Shivashankarappa was MLA of Davanagere South for four successive terms, and Ahinda communities unconditionally supported him, respecting his seniority," said K Abdul Jabbar, Congress MLC. "Now, these communities are demanding they be given a chance. While Muslims deserve the ticket going by the numbers, we will be happy if a person from the Ahinda community is fielded as the Congress candidate."Senior functionaries said options include fielding Mallikarjun's son Samarth Shamanur and Shivashankarappa's elder brother Bakkesh Shamanur.For BJP, the choice is between former MP GM Siddeshwara and BG Ajay Kumar, although Siddeshwara has ruled out his candidature. In Bagalkot, siblings Bayakka Meti and Mallikarjun Meti are competing for the seat vacated by their father HY Meti, who died in Nov last year. BJP is considering former MLA Veeranna Charantimath and MLC GH Poojar."There are differing opinions on candidates for both seats. Party brass will take a call after considering all opinions," said BJP's Jagadish Shettar, former CM and Belagavi MP.