Congress high-command to take call on next Karnataka CM candidate
(Sourced from PTI)
The Congress high-command will take a call on the next Chief Minister in consultation with the newly elected MLAs, senior party leader Mallikarjun Kharge said on Tuesday, indicating incumbent Siddaramaiah may not be the automatic choice. The Congress has consistently maintained it is contesting the polls under the leadership of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah but refrained from declaring him its candidate for the top job.
Kharge said since BJP and JDS were facing problems, they had declared their Chief Ministerial nominees, he said, without elaborating. The BJP has declared its state unit chief BS Yeddyurappa and JDS named HD Kumaraswamy as their CM faces. Both of them are former CMs. Talking about the Congress's electoral prospects, Kharge said, "We have got very good chances to win the elections."
Kharge also claimed that neither Congress nor the Chief Minister is facing "anti-incumbency". Kharge defended Siddaramaiah for filing nominations from two constituencies viz Chamundeshwari and Badami. Noting that Kumaraswamy is also contesting from two seats, he asked, "Have Prime Minister Narendra Modi and former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda not done so?" "People of both areas want Siddaramaiah to contest from Badami," he added.
"People (opposition parties) are creating a sort of atmosphere that there is no hope (for Siddaramaiah in Chamundeshwari) and that's why he is contesting (from Badami). It's not like that," Kharge added.
