Hegade to contest from Kumta?

Karwar: Ananth Kumar Hegade former Union Minister and current MP from Uttara Kannada, known for fiery speeches and piercingly pro-Hindutva from BJP has indicated that he would contest from Kumta assembly constituency in Uttara Kannada parliamentary constituency. This has surprised the BJP poll machinery in Karnataka and has put the Congress party on alert.

Ananth Kumar Hegade is understood to have confessed among the inner circles of his contacts that after serving the Modi government and the parliament he wanted to enter the Karnataka State Legislative Assembly and give a new dimension to state politics and play a decisive role in the government if BJP makes it to the required numbers in the 2023 elections.

This news has set different kinds of narratives in state politics. One of them is that Ananth Kumar Hegade would be the Chief Ministerial face of the BJP when it comes to power in 2023. The State was looking for a hardliner Hindutva chief ministerial face which was missing from the list already available to the party. The probable that are available in the BJP close circles were CT Ravi, Nalin Kumar Kateel and Sunil Kumar. All these three have been giving pro-Hindutva statements in different intonations in the recent past. But in Hegade, the party has found the right mix of having experience in the central government and working close to the central leadership. It could be recalled, however, that Hegade had once talked about going away from politics and leading a life as a recluse. But recent developments in Kumta constituency where both Congress and BJP are finding it difficult for firm footing after SurajNaikSoniNamdhariEediga leader has joined JDS and will prove to be a major vote cutter for both BJP and Congress, this has made both Congress and BJP to find strong candidates. In the case of BJP Dinakar Shetty the BJP MLA DinakarKeshav Shetty will have to be prepared by the party to sacrifice his seat. But there is nothing to stop BJP to given him another opening perhaps in the upper house of the legislature.