Bengaluru: Several disgruntled Congress leaders, who failed to get tickets to contest in the Assembly elections, are rushing to Bengaluru to meet Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to know the reasons for not including their names in the list.
They are threatening to resign from the primary membership of the party if they fail to get justice. Many trained their guns on chief minister Siddaramaiah.
Rebellion began brewing in the party ranks even as the list was made public, with several aspirants hitting the road in open defiance of the leadership across the state.
Voices of dissent were heard from Hangal, Mayakonda, Jagalur, Tiptur, Kunigal, Kolar, Kollegal, Belur, Badami, Kittur and many other constituencies.
Supporters of former excise minister Manohar Tahsildhar, who currently represents Hangal, staged a protest over denial of the party ticket to their leader. Incumbent Jagalur MLA H P Rajesh rushed to Bengaluru late Sunday night to meet chief minister Siddaramaiah, after his name failed to figure on the list. Supporters of five-time MLA D B Inamdar were also up in arms with the party holding the candidate’s name for Kittur.
On Saturday, senior leader P Ramesh, who had unsuccessfully contested from CV Raman Nagar in Bengaluru in the 2013 election, announced his decision to contest from the same seat as a JD(S) candidate.
Siddaramaiah had asked him to give up his candidature to make way for mayor R Sampath Raj.
The Congress leadership is expected to send senior leaders to these districts on a troubleshooting mission. The party has time until April 27 to convince the rebels not to upset the official candidates’ applecart.
