After a long game of hide and seek, the Congress has finally announced that incumbent legislator from Mandya and popular actor, Ambareesh, will not be contesting the elections.
The party is now fielding P Ravikumar Ganiga as its candidate. Ravikumar is all set to file his nomination from the constituency.
When the party’s first list of candidates was announced, Ambareesh was given the ticket to contest from Mandya.
However, the MLA was not keen on contesting the polls. Party sources say that Ambareesh was unhappy and had felt that the party had sidelined him.
In a telephonic conversation with Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee President Dr G Parameshwara on Monday, Ambareesh is said to have conveyed his wish to not contest the upcoming polls.
“Ambareesh thanked Parameshwara for offering him a ticket, but said he had no desire to contest the polls. Ambareesh cited his ill health and also suggested that his associate, Amaravathi Chandrashekar, be offered the ticket instead,” a Congress source said.
Ambareesh is also said to have agreed to campaign on behalf of any candidate the party wished to field.
Sources in party said that Ravikumar, a Vokkaliga leader, is close to Cheluvarayaswamy, a strongman in Old Mysuru region. “Ravikumar is strong in Mandya and is also close to Ambareesh. With Cheluvarayaswamy and Ambareesh campaigning for him, there are high chances of him winning,” a Congress source said.
Although Ambareesh had been given the ticket to contest from Mandya, he had remained elusive and had not yet collected his B-form to file his nomination.
A senior Congress leader told TNM that while the party offered Ambareesh a ticket due to his seniority, there was all probability that he would mostly lose.
On Saturday, when CM Siddaramaiah was asked at a press conference if Ambareesh was contesting, he said he had no idea. When asked whether he would try to convince Ambareesh, the CM said, “I will not try to convince Ambareesh as it is his decision to contest or not.”
On Sunday morning, Ambareesh skipped a meeting that was scheduled to be held with Chief Minister Siddaramaiah at his residence in Mysuru. Sources in the Congress said that the CM waited for Ambareesh for half an hour. However, the MLA was already en route Bengaluru.