MANGALORE: Rajashree S. Hegde of the Janata Dal (Secular), who represents Laila constituency in Belthangady taluk, is likely to be elected vice-president of the Dakshina Kannada Zilla Panchayat at its special general meeting on Tuesday. While her name has been finalised by the local leadership of the JD(S), the party is expected to make a formal announcement on Tuesday.

The post of vice-president fell vacant on February 1 after P. Dharanendra Kumar, also of the JD(S), was voted out by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-JD(S) combine, which commands a majority in the 35-member House. Two of the five JD(S) members in the House have identified themselves with the Opposition Congress, which has 15 members in the House. The BJP too has 15 members.

Three JD(S) members are supporting the BJP on the lines of the power-sharing agreement between the two parties at the State level. In fact, it was because of support from the JD(S) that the ruling combine was able to unseat Mamatha D.S. Gatti of the Congress from the post of president in December last year. This development triggered off a chain of events that ended in the ouster of Mr. Kumar on February 1.

The post of vice-president is reserved for a general candidate, and all 35 members in the House are, therefore, eligible to contest.

Under the power-sharing agreement between the BJP and the JD(S), the post of vice-president is reserved for the JD(S). While Chairman of the Social Justice Standing Committee Aziz Malar, K.P. Sucharitha Shetty and Ms. Hegde are the three JD(S) candidates who are in the fray, Ms. Hegde is likely to be rewarded for deciding to side with the BJP along with Mr. Malar and Mr. Shetty.

In fact, it was this decision that enabled the BJP to unseat Ms. Gatti from the post of president. It also helped the ruling combine ensure the election of the BJP's Sushma Janardhan as president and the removal of Mr. Kumar from the vice-president's post.

The game of musical chairs at the panchayat will end only when the body meets to elect a successor to Mr. Kumar.

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