BJP will put out its first list of candidates for Karnataka assembly election in a week, chief minister Basavaraj Bommai has said. BJP has been struggling to have the list ready and catch up with Congress and JDS, who released their first list even before polls were announced.

BJP has planned to gather opinion of grassroots level party workers in each assembly constituency which will be screened at the state level before being sent to the central election committee. The opinions of workers, constituency-wise is set to be completed by Friday and the first list could be ready by the first week of April.

Though the BJP parliamentary board will take the final call, the party is keen on projecting that a democratic process was initiated, a BJP leader who declined to be identified said. The party is expected to end the exercise with a second list.

Several MLAs are uneasy at the delay as many candidates from Congress and JDS have a head start in campaigning. BJP, however, claims the delay was deliberate to minimise the damage potential of rebels and from preventing their joining rival parties.

Congress Waiting Game

Congress has announced candidates for 124 constituencies. It is set to announce a second list in the first week of April and probably a third one a few days thereafter. The party is monitoring developments in BJP and JDS and wants to decide candidates after assessing rival contestants.

Bommai, in a chat with the media, however, alleged that Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president DK Shivakumar was trying to contact BJP MLAs to offer them tickets as Congress did not have ‘winnable candidates’.AICC general secretary RS Surjewala tweeted that the Congress had secured its first victory on the very day election dates were announced after its candidate won mayoral election in Ballari.

While Congress has assigned Varuna in Mysuru to former CM Siddaramaiah, he is believed to have asked for Kolar as a second seat and has been campaigning in Kolar. However, the Congress leadership has apparently asked him to shift to the safer seat of Varuna so that he is not tied down in Kolar. The party wants him to tour the state and help him bring Congress to power.

JDS Aims Big

JDS, which demonstrated its clout by winning all seven seats in the sugar belt of Mandya district in 2018, was the first to release a list of 93 candidates. The party has often won surprise seats in non-traditional constituencies by fielding rebel leaders from rival parties.

Congress is its formidable rival in rural parts of the Old Mysuru region. Party insiders said JDS was waiting for Congress to put out its second list before releasing its list. Party leader HD Kumaraswamy has been leading a high-decibel campaign, hoping that neither of the bigger rivals will secure a majority. It helped him become the CM last time, until BJP toppled the coalition through Operation Lotus II.