The Congress in Karnataka has forged an alliance with the regional party – JD(S) ahead of the Lok Sabha elections this year. The two parties, considered arch rivals in Karnataka have come together to defeat the BJP. The Congress has chosen to contest from 20 constituencies, while the JD(S) has been offered eight segments.
Here is the full list of candidates:
Congress
Chikkodi – Prakash Hukkeri
Sugar baron from the Hukkeri region in Belagavi, Prakash Babanna Hukkeri is the incumbent MP seeking re-election. A five-time MLA from the Chikkodi assembly segment between 1994 and 2014, Prakash Hukkeri has served as the Minister for Agriculture Marketing and Minister for Muzrai and Sugar in the Karnataka government. A strongman from Belagavi district, he had lost to BJP’s Ramesh Katti in the 2009 Lok Sabha polls.
Belagavi – Virupakshi Sadhunnavar
A member of the Karnataka Lingayat Education Society, Virupakshi Sadhunnavar is contesting Lok Sabha elections for the first time. An industrialist and a major shareholder of Rani Chennamma Sugars Ltd, Virupakshi Sadhunnavar had previously rebelled against the Congress party in 2015 during the MLC elections. When the Congress had nominated Veerkumat Patil as the MLC candidate, Virupakshi had rebelled and contested as an independent and lost the MLC polls. He is up against BJP heavyweight Suresh Angadi, the incumbent MP.
Bagalkote – Veena Kashappanavar
Veena Kashappanavar is the wife of former Hungund MLA Vijayanand and is the only woman candidate fielded by the Congress in Karnataka. She is a former Zilla Panchayat member. Bagalkote is a region dominated by Kurubas and Lingayats. The Congress had previously offered tickets to leaders belonging to the Kuruba community. However, this time around, the Congress has chosen Veena in order to cash in on the votes of the Panchamashali Lingayats in the region.
Kalaburgi – Mallikarjun Kharge
The leader of opposition for the Congress party in Lok Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge is a two-time MP from the Kalaburgi segment. Kharge has served as the Minister for Railways and Minister for Labour in the UPA government in 2009. He has won from the Gurmitkal nine times and has also served in several ministerial portfolios in the state government.
Raichur – BV Nayak
Incumbent MP of Raichur, BV Nayak comes from one of Raichur’s most influential families. Son of a former four-time MP from the region, BV Nayak first contested elections in 2014 and won against his relative, the BJP’s Shivangouda Nayak. Raichur, which has been allotted as an ST segment, has been ruled by the Nayak family for decades. BV Nayak’s father, Venkatesh Nayak was elected as MP from here in 1991, 1996, 1999 and 2004.
Bidar – Eshwar Khandre
Currently the Working President of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC), Eshwar Khandre comes from an influential political family in Bidar district. He is the son of Bhimappa Khandre, one of the most influential leaders in Bidar. Bhimappa has been a member of the Congress party since 1968 and the Khandres are known for their political dominance in the Bhalki region. Eshwar Khandre is up against incumbent BJP MP Bhagwanth Khuba.
Ballari – VS Ugrappa
Incumbent MP of Ballari, VS Ugrappa was elected to the seat during the 2018 bye-elections. Ugrappa, an 'outsider' who hails from Mysuru, is a loyalist of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah. Ugrappa belongs to the Valmiki community, and the Ballari seat is reserved for STs. This was another important reason why he made the cut.
Haveri – DR Patil
Four-time MP from Gadag region, DR Patil has been chosen as the candidate for the Haveri segment. Prior to delimitation in 2008, the constituency was called Dharwad South and the Congress had always fielded a candidate from the Muslim community. However, after 57 years, the party has changed its strategy and chosen Patil as he belongs to the dominant caste in the region – the Reddy-Lingayats.
Dharwad – Vinay Kulkarni
A Lingayat leader from the region, Vinay Kulkarni lost the parliamentary election in 2014 to BJP’s Prahallad Joshi. A loyalist of former CM Siddaramaiah, Kulkarni had gained flak from the Lingayat community after he backed the movement for a separate Lingayat religion.
Davangere – HB Manjappa
President of the Davangere District Congress Committee, HB Manjappa was not the Congress party’s first choice candidate. Earlier in March, the party had offered the ticket to Lingayat strongman Shamnur Shivashankarappa. However, Shamnur refused the ticket as he wanted his son SS Mallikarjun to contest the polls. Mallikarjun had suffered two losses in Davangere and hence the party chose Manjappa instead.
Dakshina Kannada – Mithun Rai
President of the Dakshina Kannada Youth Congress, Mithun Rai has been handpicked by Congress strategist DK Shivakumar for this parliamentary segment. He gained prominence as a youth leader and is known for his interest in preserving the cultural events of Dakshina Kannada including the Tiger Dance. With seven consecutive losses, the Congress has been pushed into a corner in the region. The party hopes to win the seat with Mithun’s soft-Hindutva approach.
Chitradurga – BN Chandrappa
Incumbent MP of Chitradurga, BN Chandrappa has been a Congress loyalist since 1989. He was the former Vice President of the Chikkamagaluru Zilla Panchayat and served as the Chairman of the Karnataka State LIDKAR (Karnataka Leather Industries Development Corporation) Board.
Mysuru-Kodagu – CH Vijayshankar
A two-time MP from the Mysuru region in 1996 and 2004, CH Vijayshankar is up against BJP’s Pratap Simha. CH Vijayshankar had defected to the BJP ahead of the 2009 parliamentary elections after the Congress refused him a ticket. He contested as a BJP candidate and lost to former Congress heavyweight AH Vishwanath.
Bengaluru Rural – DK Suresh
Brother of Karnataka Water Resource Minister DK Shivakumar, DK Suresh is the incumbent MP of Bengaluru Rural. He was first elected in 2013 as the MP from the segment during the bye-elections and went on to win the subsequent parliamentary elections in 2014.
Bengaluru North – Krishna Byre Gowda
Considered a suave urbanite, Krishna Byre Gowda is a popular face in Bengaluru city. A second generation politician, Krishna Byre Gowda won his first Assembly election in 2003 following the death of his father and former Janata Dal leader, C Byre Gowda from Vemagal in Kolar. He has five Assembly victories under his belt, and has been the Minister for Agriculture in 2013. He currently serves as the Minister for Law and Parliamentary Affairs.
Bengaluru Central – Rizwan Arshad
Currently the Chairman of the KPCC’s communications department, Rizwan Arshad is contesting from the Bengaluru Central segment for the second time. He had lost to BJP leader PC Mohan during the 2014 polls by a margin of 1,37,500 votes. He is now banking on the support of the JD(S) to make up for the loss in numbers.
Bengaluru South – BK Hariprasad
A Congress MP elected to the Rajya Sabha in 2009. BK Hariprasad had contested against late BJP leader Ananth Kumar from the Bengaluru South segment in 1999 and lost by a small margin. The constituency has remained a BJP bastion since 1996. With Ananth Kumar’s demise, the Congress is hoping to win the seat back by fielding Hariprasad.
Kolar – KH Muniyappa
A veteran Congress leader, KH Muniyappa has represented and won the Kolar parliamentary segment seven times in a row since 1991. He has also served as the Union Minister of State for Micro and Small and Medium Enterprises between 2012 and 2014.
Chamarajanagar – R Dhruvanarayana
A strongman from Chamarajanagar, Dhruvanarayana is the incumbent MP of the constituency. He has won the seat twice in succession since 2004. However, this time around, he is up against former Congress heavyweight V Srinivasa Prasad and the fight is predicted to be a tough one.
Chikkaballapura – Veerappa Moily
Former Chief Minister of Karnataka (between 1992 and 1994), Veerappa Moily has won the Chikkaballapura segment since 2009. Veerappa Moily has served as a state cabinet minister in Karnataka multiple times. He has also held several Union cabinet portfolios including Law and Justice, Power, Company Affairs and Environment and Forests during the two UPA regimes.
JD(S)
Uttara Kannada — Anand Asnotikar
The JD(S) has fielded former BJP and Congress leader Anand Asnotikar in the Uttara Kannada constituency. He became Minister for Fisheries, Science and Technology during his time in the BJP. He however left the party to join the JD(S) ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. He is set to face five-time MP Anantkumar Hegde of the BJP.
Vijayapura — Sunita Devanand Chavan
JD(S) decided to field Sunitha Chavan against BJP's two-time MP Ramesh Jigajinagi in the Vijayapura constituency. She is the lone woman candidate fielded by the JD(S) and is also the wife of Nagthan MLA Devanand Chavan. She will be making her electoral debut in the elections.
Tumakuru — HD Deve Gowda
JD(S) supremo HD Deve Gowda took his time before deciding to contest from Tumakuru. He has won the Lok Sabha polls from Hassan five times including thrice consecutively in 2004, 2009 and 2014. He decided to relinquish the Hassan seat to his grandson Prajwal Revanna and chose to contest from Tumakuru. He became the 11th Prime Minister of India in 1996 and also served as the Chief Minister of Karnataka from 1994 to 1996.
Hassan — Prajwal Revanna
Prajwal Revanna was announced as the JD(S) candidate from Hassan, taking over from his grandfather and JD(S) supremo HD Deve Gowda. He is the son of PWD Minister HD Revanna and has been groomed to contest from Hassan for years. He is the General Secretary of the JD(S) and at 27, is one of the youngest candidates in the fray from Karnataka.
Mandya — Nikhil Kumaraswamy
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Another grandson of JD(S) supremo HD Deve Gowda, Nikhil Kumaraswamy is the son of Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy and is set to enter politics by contesting from the Mandya constituency. He has acted in Kannada and Telugu films including in Jaguar and Seetharama Kalyana. He is set to face independent candidate Sumalatha Ambareesh in an eagerly anticipated battle.
Udupi-Chikkamagaluru — Pramod Madhwaraj
The lone Congressman in the JD(S) list, Pramod Madhwaraj is a former MLA and Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports in the state. After the Udupi-Chikkamagaluru seat was handed over to the JD(S), the party was unable to finalise a candidate and eventually turned to Pramod, a popular leader from Udupi. Pramod also manages Raj Fishmeal and Oil Co. and is the son of Manorama Madhwaraj, a former Karnataka minister.
Shivamogga — Madhu Bangarappa
JD(S) leader Madhu Bangarappa is contesting a Lok Sabha election from Shivamogga for the second time in six months after losing the bye-polls to BY Raghavendra of the BJP in November 2018. Madhu is the son of former Karnataka Chief Minister S Bangarappa and is also an actor and producer of Kannada films. He was previously the MLA of Sorab Assembly constituency.