Bjp’s Ramanagara Candidate Chandrashekar Backs Out 2 Days Before Karnataka Bypoll

L Chandrashekar, the BJP’s candidate for the Ramanagara by-election in Karnataka, backed out on Thursday just two days ahead of voting on Saturday, saying he was ignored by BJP leaders who didn’t turn up for campaigning as promised.

Chandrashekar had switched over to the Bharatiya Janata Party only last month after Congress’ decision to allow its alliance partner Janata Dal (Secular) to contest the seat.

“They told me that my victory would mark the downfall of the Congress-JD(S) coalition government. But all the leaders were camped elsewhere and did not show any intention to campaign for me,” Chandrashekar said.

“I wish to extend my support to the coalition candidate Anitha Kumaraswamy in the bypoll,” he said during a press conference at the residence of Bengaluru Rural MP DK Suresh, brother of Congress strongman DK Shivakumar.

Bypolls are being held for two assembly and three Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka, voting for which will be conducted on Saturday. Chief minister HD Kumaraswamy’s wife Anitha is the coalition’s candidate for the seat.

Chandrashekar said he would send in an official letter to the Election Commission because none of the assurances given to him was met.

Suresh said he welcomed Chandrashekar back into the party and said the incident showed the duplicity of the BJP.

“We have already sent a letter by mail to the returning officer and will go to the Election Commission soon,” he said.

Union minister DV Sadananda Gowda of the BJP said the incident showed all the problems with the Congress workers’ mentality.

“When someone joins our party, we feel they have bought into our ideology and thinking. Chandrashekar, too, said he believed these. But the Congress mentality does not leave people and this incident is proof of that,” Gowda said.

The minister also said the responsibility for this rested with CP Yogeshwar, the party’s Vokkaliga leader from the Bengaluru Rural region.

“He took the responsibility when he brought in Chandrashekar to the party,” he said.

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