Karnataka elections: The BJP on April 8 had declared its first list of 72 nominees that included its chief ministerial candidate B S Yeddyurappa (left), and senior leaders K S Eshwarappa and Jagadish Shettar. (Express photo by Amit Mehra/File) Karnataka elections: The BJP on April 8 had declared its first list of 72 nominees that included its chief ministerial candidate B S Yeddyurappa (left), and senior leaders K S Eshwarappa and Jagadish Shettar. (Express photo by Amit Mehra/File)

The elder brother of tainted mining baron G Janardhan Reddy and son of late chief minister S Bangarappa are among the 82 candidates announced by the Bharatiya Janata Party for the Karnataka Assembly polls on Monday. Reddy’s elder brother G Somashekar Reddy will contest from Bellary City while Kumar Bangarappa will contest from Sorab. G Janardhan Reddy is an accused in illegal mining case. In the BJP’s second list, Krishnaiah Setty, an old associate of Yeddyurappa, has been fielded from Malur.

The polling for the 224-member Assembly is scheduled to be held on May 12. The results will be declared on May 15.

Among the seats for which the party is yet to announce candidates is Varuna, for which Yeddyurappa’s son B Y Vijayendra is seen as a strong contender. The Congress has fielded Siddaramaiah’s son Yatheendra from Varuna, currently held by the chief minister who has shifted to Chamundeshwari.

Read Also: Karnataka elections: Congress releases first list of candidates, retains most of its sitting MLAs

The BJP had on April 8 declared its first list of 72 nominees that included its chief ministerial candidate B S Yeddyurappa, and senior leaders K S Eshwarappa and Jagadish Shettar. The Congress had on Sunday released its list of 218 candidates.

In the 2013, assmebly polls, the BJP was reduced to 40 seats while the Congress had won 122 seats. JD(S) led by Deve Gowda had also won 40 seats. Yeddyurappa had floated his own party, Karnataka Janata Paksha, in the last elections after he was removed as chief minister by the BJP over graft charges.

The Lingayat leader, however, merged his party with the BJP in 2014. He is contesting from Shikaripura in the upcoming polls. The BJP is making an all-out bid to oust the Congress from power in the southern state.

Meanwhile, BJP general secretary in-charge of Karnataka, Muralidhar Rao said the party’s manifesto would have “path-breaking” declarations, and hinted at it having ideas regarding Kannada and culture.

He also indicated that there might be a mention about the party’s ideas with regard to not subjecting mutts and temples to any kind of government control or “intimidation.”

“There is people’s involvement in manifesto preparation and definitely on four, five issues we will have path-breaking declarations from the party when we come out (with the manifesto),” Rao said.

(With PTI inputs)

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