BJP seeks Veerashaiva-Lingayats’ support

Davanagere: A meeting was held by the Veerashaiva-Lingayat community at the Davangere-Harihar Urban Bank Community Hall here on Saturday. Prominent BJP functionaries attempted to garner Lingayat votes.Union minister V Somanna, MLAs Aravind Bellad, CC Patil and BP Harish, and former minister Murugesh Nirani appealed to the community to vote for BJP candidate Srinivas Daskariyappa.Somanna said: "Srinivas is a young man with a future. I remember visiting JH Patel's house to discuss making Davanagere a district. Patel and H Shivappa both worked hard for this. Veerashaivas' is a large community. We did not expect this byelection. It's uncertain whether minorities will help. This is a great opportunity for them to prove their self-respect. Instead of fighting against minister Mallikarjun's family, we should fight against CM Siddaramaiah's misrule. The community should bless the BJP candidate".MLA Bellad said that an unexpected byelection has come. "We need to introspect. In the 2023 election, all communities blessed Congress. The govt came to power by winning 136 seats. However, corruption is rampant in this govt. What have they done? It was Basavaraj Bommai, as the CM, increased reservations for the community," he said.