On Thursday, BS Yediyurappa, a member of the BJP parliamentary board, suggested that the party has explored the option of nominating former chief ministers Jagadish Shettar and Basavaraj Bommai for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, and there is a significant chance they might run as candidates. Yediyurappa, a former CM and part of the BJP’s central election committee, mentioned that Union Home Minister Amit Shah and the party’s National President JP Nadda have deliberated on potential candidates for all 28 seats in the state.
He mentioned that the ultimate decision will be made during the meeting of the central election panel, scheduled for this week, which includes Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other senior party officials. If Shettar and Bommai decide to run, insiders suggest that it would carry significance as both hail from the influential Lingayat community, which forms a substantial voting bloc for the BJP in the state.
The community had shifted its support away from the BJP in the assembly elections, and the choice to field the former Chief Ministers is seen as an effort to regain their trust. Bommai, currently serving as the Shiggaon MLA, is expected to be nominated from Haveri, as the incumbent MP, Shivakumar Udasi, has declared his withdrawal from electoral politics.
Shettar, who faced defeat in the assembly elections from Hubballi-Dharwad Central, is anticipated to participate in the electoral race from Belgaum (Belgaum), presently held by Mangala Angadi, the widow of former Union Minister of State Suresh Angadi. Following her husband’s passing, Mangala, with substantial support from Shettar, secured victory in the bypolls of 2021 with a margin exceeding 5,000 votes, triumphing over Congress candidate Satish Jarkiholi.
Nonetheless, there is notable opposition within the BJP’s Belgaum division regarding Shettar’s nomination. Yediyurappa also indicated that the JD(S), an ally of the BJP, might secure “two or three seats” instead of the four it aspired to. However, there is a compelling likelihood of Dr. CN Manjunath, a renowned cardiac surgeon and the son-in-law of former PM HD Deve Gowda, running for a BJP seat from Bangalore Rural.
Manjunath is expected to compete against the incumbent DK Suresh of the Congress, who is the brother of Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar. There is increasing pressure from party members, as well as some within the BJP, for former CM and Gowda’s son HD Kumaraswamy to run from the Vokkaliga stronghold of Mandya.
