Intense lobbying on for March 18 mayor, dy mayor polls in Belagavi

Caption: Belagavi City CorporationBelagavi: Elections for the fourth term of Belagavi City Corporation (BCC) mayor and deputy mayor will be held on March 18, triggering intense lobbying within BJP, which currently enjoys a clear majority in the corporation.With the tenures of the current mayor and deputy mayor due to end on March 14, a notification for elections has been issued by Belagavi regional commissioner K M Janaki. This time, the mayor's post is reserved for a woman, while the deputy mayor's post falls under the general category. Several women members of the Lingayat and Nekar community, who comprise the major chunk of the elected members, are eyeing the mayor's post. Deepali Topagi, Savita Patil, Preeti Kamkar, Reshma Kamkar, and Veena Bijapur are the front-runners. Rajshekhar Dhoni, Santosh Padnekar, and Nitin Jadhav are in the fray for the deputy mayor's post. In addition, speculation is rife that a Congress candidate may also contest for the mayor post. Aspirants have started approaching MLAs and senior party netas, seeking their support ahead of the polls. Party leaders say internal discussions are under way to finalise the candidates. BCC comprises 58 ward members, in addition to five nominated members. The wards of BCC are commonly recognised under Belagavi North and Belagavi South constituencies. Ratnaprabha Bellad, the district president of Veerashaiva-Lingatay Mahasabha, said the Lingayat community played a key role in the BJP's victory in assembly and parliamentary elections. However, it is now being ignored, he alleged.