The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Janata Dal (S) to fight polls to urban local bodies on its own

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, May 17, 2006

Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Janata Dal (S) to fight polls to urban local bodies on its own

Special Correspondent

Party leaders meet to discuss strategy for elections to local bodies, Council

PARTY MEET: (From right) Janata Dal national president H.D. Deve Gowda, Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy, the former Minister D. Manjunath and the Ministers D.T. Jayakumar and Bandeppa Kashempur at a high-level meeting of the Janata Dal (S) in Bangal ore on Tuesday. — Photo: K. Murali Kumar

Bangalore: The Janata Dal (Secular) has decided to fight elections independently and will have no electoral understanding with the Bharatiya Janata Party.

A high-level meeting of the party was held here on Tuesday under the leadership of JD(S) national president H.D. Deve Gowda to chalk out the party's strategy for the coming elections to urban local bodies and the Legislative Council from the graduates' and teachers' constituencies. The party also decided to field three candidates for the elections to the Council from the Assembly. (There are 11 seats to be filled from the Assembly.)

Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy, State JD(S) president M.P. Prakash and the former Minister D. Manjunath were among the top leaders who attended the meeting.

To stick to ideology

Briefing presspersons after the meeting, Mr. Deve Gowda said the party would stick to its ideology and would have no electoral understanding with any party. He noted that the JD(S) had contested byelections in the past two years when it was part of the coalition government with the Congress. "We remain steadfast to the party philosophy," he said.

He said the party would contest all six Council seats from the graduates' and teachers' constituencies for which elections would be held on June 17.

It was decided that top party leaders would meet on Wednesday and recommend a panel of names for the Council elections from which candidates would be finalised.

The JD(S) would also have its share in nominations to the Council, he said. For the three seats that had remained vacant for 22 months, the JD(S) and the BJP would nominate on candidate each. The third candidate would be chosen by both the parties, he said.

Mr. Deve Gowda said that apart from contesting all the seats in the elections to the Council, the party would contest a majority of the seats in the elections to the urban local bodies, including city corporations.

After the elections, measures would be taken to strengthen the party at all levels. Mr. Deve Gowda said he would tour all the districts from June 15. He would spend at least one day in each district. If required, office-bearers at the district and taluk level and of organisational wings would be changed. He refused to be drawn into questions about the criticism of his style of functioning by Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president M. Mallikarjun Kharge and Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly N. Dharam Singh.

Mr. Deve Gowda also had a word of advice for his son, Mr. Kumaraswamy. He should stay put in Bangalore and tone up the administration. The beginning of the new academic year was also round the corner, he pointed out. "The Chief Minister has extensively toured the State over the past three months, and I am sure he must be fully aware of the problems of the people in all parts of the State."

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