Mandya: 'With or without BJP ticket' - Sumalatha Ambareesh will certainly contest elections

Mandya: Sumalatha Ambareesh will certainly be contesting the upcoming Lok Sabha elections from Mandya, said her close confidant Hanakere H P Shashikumar.

Speaking to reporters at a press conference on Tuesday, Shashikumar asserted that Sumalatha Ambareesh is ready to contest even as an independent candidate.

Amidst the alliance between the JDS and BJP in the region, speculation has been rife, but Sumalatha Ambarish remains unaligned with any political party, he said.

Shashikumar highlighted that Sumalatha has only given outside support to the BJP during the previous state assembly elections. She has not obtained primary membership with any party. “Sumalatha will represent the voice of the people of the district,” he emphasized.

During the last election, Indavalu S Sachidananda stood as the BJP candidate. The former Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy met Sachidananda due to the BJP-JDS alliance. “We are hopeful that they will back Sumalatha Ambareesh,” he added.