Ramanna, who is chairperson of the Bengaluru-Mysuru Infrastructure Corridor Area Planning Authority, had unsuccessfully contested the 2011 Channapatna bypoll, which Yogeshwar won as the BJP’s candidate.
“We're not anticipating Yogeshwar to join Congress. Having said that, if a strong leader wants to join our party, we'll welcome that,” Balakrishna said.
This time, if Yogeshwar contests as an independent, Channapatna will face a triangular fight with Congress and JD(S) candidates in the fray.
“If there's a triangular fight, Congress will win, maybe with a thin margin. If there’s a straight fight, Congress will win then, too,” Balakrishna said.
Asked about the possibility of former Bangalore Rural MP DK Suresh (Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar’s brother) contesting the Channapatna bypoll, Balakrishna said: “Suresh has decided to stay away from elections for the time being. He won’t contest. If he really was contesting, we’d have declared his name already.”
Published 22 October 2024, 16:59 IST