BJP shortlists candidates for all 28 Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka

The BJP's Karnataka unit said Sunday that it has shortlisted candidates for all the 28 Lok Sabha constituencies and the party's central election committee would soon take a call on it.

"We have shortlisted the names of all the candidates (in Karnataka). The central election committee will take a decision on it and release the list," BJP state general secretary Arvind Limbavali told reporters.

He was speaking after the party's state core meeting here, chaired by BJP state president B S Yeddyurappa.

BJP general secretary and state unit in-charge P Muralidhar Rao, BJP organising secretary (in-charge south India) B L Santosh, former chief ministers D V Sadananda Gowda and Jagadish Shettar were among those who attended the meeting.

Limbavali said the state election committee would table the list before the central election committee, headed by its national president, but refused to divulge the names, saying the CEC would announce it later.

On the Mandya Lok Sabha seat, where Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy's son Nikhil Kumaraswamy is pitted against multi-lingual actress Sumalatha Ambareesh, wife of late actor-turned-politician Ambareesh, he said the core committee discussed fielding a candidate.

However, the party kept its options open and would take a final call based on Sumalatha's decision, he said.

Mandya has gone to the JD(S) as per the seat sharing agreement between the coalition partners Congress and the JD(S).

The party has planned to field Nikhil Gowda, grandson of former prime minister H D Deve Gowda and son of Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy.

However, Sumalatha's decision has disturbed the political equations.

Ambareesh had represented Mandya thrice in the Lok Sabha, the first time on a JD(S) ticket and twice on Congress ticket.

He was minister of state for information and broadcasting during the UPA-1 regime.

Limbavali said senior Congress leader from Hassan, A Manju would soon join the BJP after his meeting with Yeddyurappa.

Manju had been a vocal critic of Gowda and often expressed his displeasure in respecting the Congress-JD(S) coalition.