Selection disappoints Congressmen

By Our Special Correspondent

BANGALORE, MAY 31. There is disappointment and resentment among the Vokkaliga leaders in the Congress(I) in particular over the selection of the party candidates for the Legislative Council elections.

It is being pointed out that though a Vokkaliga, Mr. "Layout" Krishnappa, had been fielded, he had been taken as the eighth candidate which, in the event of a contest, makes his candidature vulnerable. There are no Vokkaligas among the party's seven main candidates. It is stated that the resentment is not against the Chief Minister, Mr. S.M.Krishna, but against the High Command (Ms. Sonia Gandhi) herself and those close to her. Though two Vokkaliga MLCs are retiring, only one is being fielded and they were denied seat for the Rajya Sabha election. Prominent among the Vokkaliga leaders who were in the race for the party ticket were Mr. C.R.Narayanappa, Mr. D.S.Gowda, Mr. Ramesh Raju from Mandya District, Dr. Premchandra Sagar and Ms. Vijayalakshmi Ramanna (sister-in-law of the Speaker, Mr. M.V.Venkatappa).

Though it is not the Congress(I) alone, but even the BJP and the Janata Dal (United) which want the Kannada Chaluvaligar leader, Mr. Vatal Nagaraj, to withdrawn from the contest, it is the ruling party which wants him out of the contest, the most. If he remains in the fray, the Congress(I) might face difficulties in getting Mr. Krishnappa elected. What is embarrassing for the Janata Dal(U) is that though it has fielded its senior leader, Mr. M.P.Prakash, two of its MLAs, Mr. H.S.Mahadev Prasad and Mr. S.B.Suresh Babu, are among the seven MLAs who have proposed the candidature of Mr. Nagaraj. The other five are Mr. H.D.Chowdaiah and Mr. Ravikant Patil (Independents) and Mr. K.M.Krishnamurthy, Mr. Channigappa and Mr. Cheluvarayaswamy (Janata Dal-Secular).

The KPCC(I) has appealed to Mr. Vatal Nagaraj to withdraw from the contest and pave the way for the unanimous election of the 11 candidates. The party spokesman, Mr. Kondajji Mohan, who made the appeal, noted that the Government had appointed Mr. Nagaraj as the Chairman of the committee on the problems of Kannadigas in the neighbouring States, which carried the rank of a Cabinet minister.

What is noteworthy about the selections made by the ruling party is the dropping of the Chairman, Mr. D.B.Kalmankar, besides the senior-most MLC, Mr. T.N.Narasimha Murthy, and another of its senior MLCs, Mr. Bheemanna Khandre, who is the president of the powerful All India Veerashaiva Mahasabha. It has also denied the ticket to Mr. Marilinge Gowda and Mr. S.A.Jiddi.

If the choice of at least two of the Congress(I)'s candidates for the Rajya Sabha election, Ms. Bhimba Raikar and Mr. K.B.Krishnamurthy (who were elected), caused surprise in party circles, the selection of some of the candidates this time has caused resentment and shock. Disappointment is widespread in the party, both among the veteran members and those of the Youth Congress and the neglected sections of the backward classes. It has not gone unnoticed that the party has replaced the retiring Kuruba caste MLC, Mr. Jiddi, with another from the same caste, Mr. Kariyanna Sangatti. However, it is being stated that Mr. Sangatti was active in the youth wing till recently in Koppal District.

However, the selection of three of the candidates, the Minister of State for Medical Education, Ms. Nafees Fazal, the elderly Mr. M.V.Rajashekaran and Mr. V.R.Sudershan have been welcomed. Mr. Rajashekaran, a former MP from Kanakapura (1967-71), was an MLA elected on the Janata ticket. He is the son-in-law of Mr. S.Nijalingappa. Mr. Sudershan is an able parliamentarian and Ms. Fazal has done well as a minister. Mr. Maruti Muley is managing some educational institutions in Gulbarga District and Ms. Jalaja Naik owes her selection to the campaign she carried on behalf of Ms. Sonia Gandhi in the Bellary Lok Sabha election. Ms. Naik who is stated to be a good speaker is from Harihar. There is a feeling that those without patrons in the AICC(I) have little future in the State Congress(I). Mr. B.A.Hasanabba, who is virtually running the KPCC(I), is one of those left out of the selection, as the party could not select two Muslims.

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : Southern States
Previous : Panchayat polls: Dharam Singh sees 'Cong. wave'
Next     : 'Govt keen on doubling rail track'