New Delhi: Radha Mohan Das Agarwal, the BJP's national general secretary and Karnataka in-charge, said on Saturday that the party's ally, JD(S), will be fielding candidates in the Lok Sabha elections from Mandya, Hassan, and Kolar constituencies. Speaking at a party event, he said, BJP and JD(S) workers will cooperate and work for each other's victory.
"We are not fighting alone...We are fighting it with JD(S). We have given Mandya, Hassan and Kolar seats to the JD(S). When we have given these seats to the JD(S), we too are at loss. You will see us (BJP and JD(S)) fighting this battle shoulder to shoulder", PTI quoted Agarwal as saying.
The BJP has released the list of candidates for 20 out of the 28 Lok Sabha constituencies in Karnataka, with the remaining seats pending announcement. R Ashoka, Leader of the Opposition in the Karnataka Assembly, said the ball is now in the BJP central parliamentary board's court and its decision will be final with regard to Mandya.
Lok Sabha Election 2024: NDA's List For 23 Seats In Karnataka
| S. No. | Candidates | Party | Seat |
| 1 | Annasaheb Shankar Jolle | BJP | Chikkodi |
| 2 | P.C. Gaddigoudar | BJP | Bagalkot |
| 3 | Ramesh Jigajinagi | BJP | Bijapur (SC) |
| 4 | Umesh G Jadhav | BJP | Gulbarga (SC) |
| 5 | Bhagwanth Khuba | BJP | Bidar |
| 6 | Basavaraj Kyavator | BJP | Koppal |
| 7 | B. Sriramulu | BJP | Bellary (ST) |
| 8 | Basavaraj Bommai | BJP | Haveri |
| 9 | Pralhad Joshi | BJP | Dharwad |
| 10 | Gayathri Siddeshwara | BJP | Davanagere |
| 11 | B Y Raghavendra | BJP | Shimoga |
| 12 | Kota Srinivas Poojar | BJP | Udupi Chikmagalur |
| 13 | Capt. Brijesh Chowta | BJP | Dakshina Kannada |
| 14 | V Somanna | BJP | Tumkur |
| 15 | Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar | BJP | Mysore |
| 16 | S Balaraj | BJP | Chamarajanagar (SC) |
| 17 | C N Manjunath | BJP | Bangalore Rural |
| 18 | Kumari Shobha Karandlaje | BJP | Bangalore North |
| 19 | P.C. Mohan | BJP | Bangalore Central |
| 20 | Tejasvi Surya | BJP | Bangalore South |
| 21 | Yet To Be Announced | JD(S) | Mandya |
| 22 | Yet To Be Announced | JD(S) | Hassan |
| 23 | Yet To Be Announced | JD(S) | Kolar |
Mandya constituency emerged as a significant point of contention between the two parties and the announcement over the list of seats was delayed due to the alleged adamant stance of the sitting MP Sumalatha Ambareesh, an independent candidate.
Sumalatha, a multilingual film actress and the wife of the renowned Kannada actor-turned-politician late Ambareesh, made headlines during the 2019 Lok Sabha elections when she contested as an independent candidate. She emerged victorious, defeating Nikhil Kumaraswamy, the grandson of former Prime Minister and JD(S) supremo H D Deve Gowda, and the son of former Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy, as per PTI reports.
Despite her significant victory, Sumalatha has not yet disclosed her future political plans. However, she has consistently expressed her desire to contest from Mandya, a constituency she regards as her stronghold and base of support.
PTI cited sources within the JD(S) as indicating that the party has made a decision to nominate H D Kumaraswamy as its candidate from the Mandya constituency. The party was also insistent about fielding a candidate from the constituency as it has a strong base in the district given the fact that there is a substantial Vokkaliga population, which the JD(S)' first family belongs to.
The JD(S) had won all seven seats in the Mandya district in the 2018 Assembly elections. However, it lost ground in the 2023 Assembly polls when it won only one seat while the Congress emerged victorious in six segments.