Denied poll ticket, BJP aspirants protest across Karnataka

After announcing its first list of candidates for the upcoming Karnataka assembly elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is facing protests from workers and disgruntled ticket aspirants in several constituencies across the state.

Supporters of BJP MLA Mahadevappa Yadawad protested Tuesday night in Ramdurg constituency in Belagavi after the party allegedly denied a ticket to him. A video of the protest was shared by news agency ANI on Twitter. Chikka Revana, who joined the BJP recently, was given the poll ticket from the constituency.

The supporters of sitting BJP MLA from Belagavi North, Anil Benake staged a protest last evening after he was denied a ticket in the upcoming Karnataka Assembly elections.

Meanwhile, the former Chief Minister and six-time MLA Jagadish Shettar, who has been asked to retire from electoral politics by the BJP high command, has not made it to the first list of candidates of the party that was announced late on Tuesday.

The six-time MLA from Hubbali said he has written to the party bosses, requesting them to give him another chance to fight elections.

In exclusive interview to news agency ANI, Shettar said he had asked the high command about the meaning of seniority. "My age is 67 and I am an ex-CM. Every survey has shown that I am popular. In the last six elections, I was elected with the blessings of the Hubbali people... I was continuously elected with a margin of more than 25,000 votes. I have not lost a single term," he said.

Shettar spelt out his commitment to the party, highlighting how his family had been associated with the BJP since the days of the Jana Sangh.

"My uncle was a Jana Sangh MLA in 1967, my father in 1976 was councillor and mayor of Hubbali... The Shettar family has contributed a lot to strengthening the party in north Karnataka," he added.

Meanwhile, BJP's Shivamogga MLA K.S. Eshwarappa said he would like to withdraw from electoral politics, in what is being seen as an attempt to pre-empt his exclusion from the candidate list.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) released its first list of 189 candidates for the May 10 Karnataka Assembly elections.

Out of the 189 candidates that the BJP announced today, 52 of them will be fresh faces.