Karnataka Bypolls 2024: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has announced the candidature of Bharath Bommai, son of former Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, for the upcoming Shiggaon bypoll. This move marks the entry of the third generation of the Bommai family into electoral politics, following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather, S R Bommai, both of whom have held the office of Chief Minister in Karnataka. Basavaraj Bommai currently serves as the BJP Member of Parliament from the Haveri Lok Sabha constituency.
In addition to Bharath, the BJP has fielded Bangaru Hanumanthu, the president of the party’s Scheduled Tribes Morcha, as its candidate for the Sandur Assembly segment.
As political dynamics shift, the BJP-JD(S) alliance is yet to declare its candidate for the Channapatna Assembly constituency. According to news agency PTI, sources within the Janata Dal (Secular) suggest that Union Minister H D Kumaraswamy’s son, Nikhil Kumaraswamy, is a strong contender for the ticket.
Meanwhile, the Congress party has yet to announce its candidates. However, party insiders cited by PTI indicate that Pathan Ahmed Khan, who lost to Basavaraj Bommai in the 2023 Assembly elections, may be nominated again for the Shiggaon seat. In Sandur, the party is considering nominating either the wife or daughter of Congress MP E Tukaram.
Regarding Channapatna, reports suggest that Deputy Chief Minister and Congress state president D K Shivakumar’s brother, D K Suresh, could also be in line for the ticket.
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Karnataka Bypolls 2024
These bypolls have arisen due to the resignations of three sitting MLAs: H D Kumaraswamy from Channapatna, E Tukaram from Sandur, and Basavaraj Bommai from Shiggaon, all of whom stepped down after securing victories in the Lok Sabha elections.
The Election Commission of India (ECI) has scheduled voting for the by-elections on 13 November, with the results set to be announced on 23 November. Notably, 47 assembly constituencies across 13 states will hold elections on the same day. The ECI had earlier disclosed the polling dates for Maharashtra and Jharkhand on 15 October.
