Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah announced on Wednesday that Congress’ list of candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections will be announced within two to three days and that there is no “major controversy” over their selection.
The nominees will be finalized based on the opinions of the local leaders of the party.
”In two to three days Congress list may also get released. Tomorrow, the central election committee is meeting. Karnataka candidates will also be finalised and announced in two to three days,” Siddaramaiah told reporters in Karwar.
”There is no major controversy. This time we are deciding based on the opinion given by district in-charge Ministers, observers, MLAs, defeated candidates, Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha members, block committee presidents, and district presidents,” the Chief Minister said.
Under the leadership of AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge, Deputy Chief Minister and State Congress President D K Shivakumar said the list would be finalized after Thursday’s meeting in the national capital.
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The BJP won 25 of the state’s 28 seats in the general elections in 2019, and an independent that the party supported also won.
Both the Congress and the JD(S) headed by former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda, who were running a coalition government at the time and fought the election together, had failed to win more than one seat each.
However, the political scene has changed significantly since then. The Congress won the Assembly elections in May last year and now appears battle-ready, determined to win the Lok Sabha elections.
JD(S) has also experienced a role reversal since joining the BJP-led NDA in September of last year. In the current election cycle, the party is negotiating a seat-sharing arrangement with the BJP, seeking to demonstrate that it remains a force to be reckoned with, particularly in South Karnataka.
