Siddaramaiah to contest the coming Assembly elections from Athani

Belagavi: Will Chief Minister Siddaramaiah abandon his usual constituencies like Varuna and Chamundeshwari in Mysuru and contest the coming assembly elections from Athani, under pressure from top Congress leaders from Belagavi region?

These leaders feel this is the ideal way to counter the BJP, which has emerged as a strong force in most of the 18 assembly segments in Belagavi in the last one decade. KPCC president Dr G Parameshwar who lost in Koratagere in Tumakuru in the 2013 polls, is likely to contest from Raibag in Belagavi to help his party bounce back in its old bastion, sources claimed.

Claiming that the CM has agreed to enter the fray from Athani, Small Scale Industries Minister and district minister in charge of Belagavi, Ramesh Jarkiholi asserted that Mr Siddaramaiah agreed to the offer when he met him along with Congress MLC Vivekrao Patil and highlighted the need to end the BJP's winning spree in Athani.

Congress leaders are keen to test the BJP's current strength in Athani by fielding the CM there and Dr Parameshwar from Raibag. Chikkodi MP  Prakash Hukkeri too backs Jarkiholi and said that the Congress would win all 18 seats in Belagavi if both the CM and Parameshwar contested from the district. According to sources, Dr Parameshwar is ready to contest from Raibag in the larger interests of his party and because of the rising pressure from party leaders in Belagavi.

Athani MLA Laxman Savadi and Raibag MLA Duryodhan Aihole, both of the BJP, have emerged as powerful leaders in their constituencies with virtually none in the Congress to counter them.

 However, it remains to be seen if Congress leaders in Mysuru will allow the Chief Minister to shift his constituency.