Two Karnataka MPs Resign as MLAs

BENGALURU: Two newly elected Lok Sabha members-H.D. Kumaraswamy and Basavaraj Bommai, both former Chief Ministers, on Saturday resigned as Legislative Assembly members. They tendered their resignations to Speaker U.T. Khader. H.D. Kumaraswamy is now a Union Minister of Heavy Industries.

Both Kumaraswamy and Basavaraj Bommai got elected to the Legislative Assembly a year back. Kumaraswamy of Janata Dal Secular represented Channapatna Assembly seat in Ramnagar district and Bommai of Bharatiya Janata Party was elected from Shiggaon Assembly seat in Haveri district.

Kumaraswamy is the State president of Janata Dal Secular and he contested Mandya Lok Sabha seat on the insistence of leaders of Mandya district and won the election against his nearest rival Venkataramane Gowda of Congress party. Kumaraswamy secured 8, 51, 881 votes and Venkataramane Gowda got 5, 67, 261 votes.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha election, Kumaraswamy’s son Nikhil contested the Mandya seat and lost to independent nominee Sumalatha Ambareesh. In a bid to regain the lost seat, Kumaraswamy entered the fray and was successful in winning the election. Nikhil lost to Sumalatha by over 1.5 lakh votes.

In the 2023 Assembly election, Congress nominees won in Srirangapatna, Nagamangala, Maddur, Mandya, Malavalli, Krishnaraja Nagar and Congress backed candidate Darshan Puttanaiah of Raitha Sangha won Melukote seat. JDS won Krishnaraja Pete seat.

The victory of Kumaraswamy in Mandya is termed as a step to revive the JDS which has been losing its ground in Old Mysuru region where the party has considerable voter support in Karnataka.

A mega felicitation function is organized in Mandya for H.D. Kumaraswamy by Mandya JDS leaders on Sunday. The public function is to fete Kumaraswamy on becoming a Union Minister in Narendra Modi cabinet.

From BJP, Basavaraj Bommai contested the Haveri Lok Sabha seat. Bommai secured 7, 05, 538 votes against his close rival in the fray Anand Swamygaddedevaramath polled 6, 62, 025 votes.