Will Somanna join Cong and contest in LS polls from Tumkur?

Bengaluru: It is being widely discussed among party workers that former minister V Somanna will contest as a Congress candidate in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections from Tumkur. The list of guests for the inauguration of the Guru Bhavan built by the Somanna family at Sri Siddaganga Mutt seems to support the fact that V Somanna is eager to leave the BJP and join the ‘Congress’ in Tumkur.

On December 6, the inauguration program of Guru Bhavan will be held at the Siddaganga Math. Home Minister, Tumkur District In-charge Minister Dr G Parameshwar and Cooperation Minister KN Rajanna have been invited for this programme. State level leaders of BJP have not been invited. MP GS Basavaraju, Urban MLA GB Jyotiganesh, Rural MLA B Suresh Gowda, Vice Member Chidananda M Gowda, Y A Narayanaswamy are the only invited BJP leaders from the district.

Dr. G. Parameshwar will inaugurate Guru Bhavan, K N Rajanna will be offering Shivayogi work to public. Presence of invited BJP leaders. Thus, as the invitation letter comes out, the discussion of V Somanna joining ‘Congress’ has gained strength. It is no secret that V Somanna lashed out at BJP leaders after losing the assembly elections. He openly vented his displeasure against the leaders. He also expressed his aspiration for the post of state president.

Operation Hasta is going on in the district. Ex-MLA from Tumkur Rural DC Gourishankar has joined the Congress, annoyed with the ‘alliance’. DT Srinivas, husband of former MLA Purnima Srinivas of Hiriyur assembly constituency in Chitradurga district, has joined the Congress and has been officially announced as the candidate for the South East Teachers Constituency. Before the assembly elections, Gubbi’s SR Srinivas left the JDS and Chikkanayakanahalli’s KS Kiran Kumar left the BJP and joined the Congress and got the Congress ticket.

Congress is looking for candidates for the Lok Sabha contest. KPCC General Secretary Murulidhara Halappa, Spokesperson Nikethraj Maurya are in the race. There is also talk of former MP SP Muddahanume Gowda returning back to his old party. Meanwhile, V Somanna is inclined to join ‘Congress’.

This is not the first time that V Somanna has eyed Tumkur. There was also a serious discussion about fielding his son Arun Somanna as a BJP candidate from Gubbi assembly constituency for the assembly elections. But it was not fruitful. Now Somanna himself is in the mood to enter the district through Congress. The question is whether the Congress high command will give importance to Somanna and leave the local leaders.

V Somanna has been invited to the inauguration program of Guru Bhavan. The issue of him joining the Congress will take place at the level of the KPCC president. It will not happen at our stage, said Home Minister and Tumkur District In-charge Minister

Dr G Parameshwar.