Bypolls: BJP announces candidates; Sajjankar surprisingly gets Hanagal

Bengaluru: The BJP high command has announced the candidates for the bypolls to two constituencies in the state scheduled for October 30.

As expected, Ramesh Bhusanur will contest for BJP in the legislative assembly seat from the Sindagi constituency.

However, Shivaraj Sajjankar getting the other BJP ticket has surprised everyone. Rumour mills suggested that the ticket would go to Revathi Udasi, the daughter-in-law of late C.M. Udasi whose death had created a vacancy at Hanagal.

Like the Belagavi Lok Sabha bypolls, there was talk that the Udasi family would be given tickets on compassionate grounds in Hanagal. But the BJP leaders have overturned all such calculations and given tickets to former MLA Shivaraj Sajjankar.

Shivraj was brought into the BJP-fold by the late C.M. Udasi. In 2004, he became an MLA by winning from the Haveri assembly constituency. Between 2013-2018, He had served as the BJP’s Haveri District President.