BJP clears 136 names for Karnataka Assembly polls

New Delhi, Apr 10 (UNI) The BJP today cleared the names of 136 nominees for the three-phase elections for the 224-member Karnataka Assembly elections scheduled to be held in May renominating 44 sitting MLAs including Chief Ministerial nominee B S Yeddiyurappa from his Shikaripura constituency.

Nine sitting MLAs have been denied renomination mostly because of change of constituencies under the newly delimited constituencies, BJP General Secretary Ananth Kumar told reporters after a two-and-half-hour long meeting of the party's Central Election Committee.

The meeting presided over by Party President Rajnath Singh renominated its key leaders K S Eswarappa and Jagadish Shettiar from their respective constituencies.

Prominent leaders who joined the party recently and still got the BJP nomination include Mr G T Deve Gowda (Periyapatna), Mr Bacche Gowda (Hosakote), Mr Basavaraj Bommai (Shiggaon), former Congress MP Dr B G Jawali and M Mahadev (Chamarajanagara).

Mr Bommai is the son of former Janata Dal President Janata Dal President and former Chief Minister S R Bommai while Dr Jawali is the son-in-law of another former CM Veerendra Patil.

Leaders of Opposition L K Advani, Jaswant Singh and former BJP Presidents Murli Manohar Joshi and M Venkaiah Naidu were among those who attended the crucial meeting. Besides Mr Yeddiyurappa, Karnataka BJP President Sadananda Gowda and BJP incharge for Karnataka elections Arun Jaitley briefed the meeting about the party's perspectives and readiness to face the elections.

In the first phase, 89 constituencies will be going to polls on May 10 in South Karnataka region while the second phase involves 66 constituencies on May 16 and the third 69 seats on May 22.

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