The Hindu : Bangarappa, Arif Khan in BJP list

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Mar 22, 2004

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Bangarappa, Arif Khan in BJP list

By Neena Vyas

NEW DELHI, MARCH 21. The list of 52 Lok Sabha candidates released by the Bharatiya Janata Party here today includes some prominent political personalities who joined the party recently. The list covers several States, including the first list of 20 candidates for Karnataka and five for Andhra Pradesh. The list was released after a meeting of the party's central election committee. The next meeting is scheduled for March 23.

Among those who joined the party on the eve of elections and who have been "accommodated" are the former Congress Chief Minister of Karnataka, S. Bangarappa, who will contest from Shimoga on the BJP ticket for the first time; Ramesh Jigajinagi, who belonged to the Janata parivar, has got the green signal to contest from Chikkodi, which he represented in the dissolved Lok Sabha; and H.T. Sangliyana, former Bangalore Police Commissioner who has been given the ticket for Bangalore-North.

Arif Mohammed Khan, who came to the BJP via the Congress, the Bahujan Samaj Party and the Lok Janshakti, is being fielded from Kaisarganj in Uttar Pradesh.

A surprise in the Uttar Pradesh list is the candidate from Machhlishahar, the Assembly Speaker, Kesrinath Tripathi.

To take the Karnataka list first. Among the prominent candidates are Anantha Kumar, BJP State unit president, who will contest from his own constituency, Bangalore-South; Basangowda Patil Yetnal, who will fight the Yatnal (Bijapur) seat he represents; D.C. Srikantappa (Chikmagalore) and Ram Chandra Veerappa (Bidar). D.V. Sadanand Gowda, who has been given the ticket from Mangalore, has shifted his constituency.

A.P., Kerala lists

In the Andhra Pradesh list, several prominent names figure: Bandaru Dattatreya (Secunderabad); U.V. Krishnam Raju (Narsapur); and Vidhyasagar Rao (Karimnagar), all of whom are Ministers at the Centre; Kanti Pudi Sarvarayudu (Rajahmundry), whose constituency has been changed; and K. Balakondaiah (Nellore-SC).

The party also announced six candidates for Kerala: Balakrishna Shetty (Kasaragod); O.G. Thankappan (Ernakulam); S.T.B. Mohan Das (Idukki); K. Sudhakaran (Kollam); Padma Kumar (Chirayinkizhu); and Padmanabhan (Alappuzha).

In Uttar Pradesh, 11 candidates have been announced in addition to the list of 56 candidates declared earlier, bringing the total to 67.

Satyapal Malik will contest the Bagpat seat; Brijpal Singh Shakya (Badaun); Parmatmanand Tiwary will contest from Balia, the seat represented by the former Prime Minister, Chandra Shekhar.

From Bihar, the two additional candidates announced today are Lal Muni Choubey, sitting MP from Buxar, and Udai Singh from Purnea.

Some of the others on the list released today are: Karuna Shukla, the Prime Minister's niece, from Janjgir in Chhattisgarh; Rupali Dilip Patil Nilangkar from Latur in Maharashtra; Avinash Rai Khanna from Hoshiarpur in Punjab; and two sitting MPs from Uttaranchal, Manabendra Shah (Tehri Garhwal) and Harpal Singh Sathi (Hardwar-SC).

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