Congress to reveal candidates for remaining seats after screening committee meeting

Bengaluru: KPCC president D. K. Shivakumar has said that names for Congress candidates in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections for remaining seats would be confirmed after the party conducts a Screening Committee meeting on March 11.

In the initial list for the Lok Sabha elections, the Congress disclosed seven candidates from Karnataka. Addressing reporters at his Sadashivanagar residence, Shivakumar stated, “While more names were intended to be announced in today’s list, these will be finalized during the upcoming Screening Committee meeting on March 11.”

Randeep Singh Surjewala will be in Bengaluru on Sunday and the party leaders from the state would deliberate on the names for the remaining seats.

“The selection of candidates is based on input from local leaders and our survey findings. After the Screening Committee meeting, more names will be confirmed,” he added.

Responding to inquiries about the number of candidates declared, the Deputy Chief Minister remarked, “The number of names I took to Delhi is not significant. The Congress High Command makes the decisions. We only suggest the names. The Congress Election Committee gathers its own intelligence, and decisions are made considering all these factors.”

The announced candidates for the Lok Sabha elections from Karnataka include Anandaswamy Gaddadevara Math (Haveri), H.R. Algur (Raju) for the Bijapur MP seat, Geetha Shivarajkumar (Shivamogga), S.P. Muddahanume Gowda (Tumakuru), M. Shreyas Patel (Hassan), Venkatarame Gowda aka Star Chandru (Mandya), and D.K. Suresh for the Bengaluru Rural MP seat.

Geetha Shivarajkumar’s entry into the competition is expected to intensify the race for the Shivamogga MP seat, currently held by B.Y. Raghavendra, the son of former Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa. Geetha, daughter of former Chief Minister S. Bangarappa and wife of Kannada superstar Shivarajkumar, has her brother Madhu Bangarappa serving as the Education Minister in Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s Cabinet.

S.P. Muddahanume Gowda (Tumakuru) recently rejoined the Congress after leaving the BJP. The BJP is actively seeking a formidable candidate for the Tumakuru constituency, as the incumbent BJP MP G.S. Basavaraj has declared his retirement.

The Congress has also announced candidates for Mandya and Hassan, traditionally considered strongholds of JD (S). Mandya is presently represented by independent MP Sumalatha Ambareesh, while Hassan is represented by Prajwal Revanna, the grandson of former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda.