Actor Sumalatha kicked off a tour of Karnataka’s Mandya district to assess the mood of the people as well meet with local Congress leaders on Friday. Sumalatha had earlier appealed to senior Congress leader Siddaramaiah and requested him to permit her to contest for the upcoming elections from Mandya.
On Friday, Sumalatha visited the Someshwara and Shambulingeshwara temples in the district of Mandya, as she began her tour of the district.
“We couldn’t imagine life without Ambareesh, but the love and compassion shown by the people of Mandya has helped the family recover,” she reportedly said at the inauguration of a bust of her late husband, actor-politician Ambareesh. While she had previously stated that she had no intentions of entering politics, she has changed her stance at the insistence of the fans of her late husband.
"Ambareesh was with the Congress and I am yet to talk to the leaders from the party. I don't know if I will contest the elections but if I do, I will contest from Mandya. Ambareesh had worked for the people of Mandya and our family will continue to do the same. I am humbled by the support the people have shown me and I do not want to disappoint them," she stated to the media at the time.
The late actor and politician Ambareesh had joined the Congress in 1999 and had served as the Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting until he resigned over issues with the Cauvery Tribunal Dispute Award. It should be noted, however, that his resignation was not formally accepted.
According to earlier reports, the JD(S) and Congress were allegedly engaged in disputes over who would get the ticket to contest from the old Mysuru region of Mandya. Several harboured the opinion that Sumalatha would not be favoured as a candidate by the Congress, who apparently do not want to risk their alliance with the JD(S) by giving the ticket to the actor.