End of road for veterans if Congress enforces one-family-one-ticket norm

Bengaluru: The one-family-one-ticket norm announced by the Congress leadership at the Chintan Shivir, was held in Udaipur in Rajasthan has rattled a few Congress leaders in Karnataka. The session had clearly indicated that nobody except the members of the Gandhi family will get more than one ticket to contest in the coming elections.

The announcement has already triggered undercurrents of dissent as many politicians have their family members in key positions. The Congress is the only party whose leaders and more than one member of their families are holding public office. KPCC president DK Shivakumar himself is an MLA and his younger brother DK Suresh is an MP.

Opposition leader in the State Assembly S Siddaramiah and his son Dr Yathindra Siddaramiah are both MLAs, Mallikarjunan Kharge is an MP and his son Priyank Kharge is an MLA. If the Congress is serious about this proposal it might have to forego a few elderly leaders and settle for young heirs. In any case, the Congress is also mulling over not giving tickets to people above 70 years for both Assembly and Lok Sabha elections which means both Kharge and Siddaramiah might not be able to contest in the coming elections and it is the end of the road for them.

Shamanuru Shivashankarappa and his son SS Mallikarjuna also face the same fate. After the announcement of this policy, Congress leaders who are in doubt were inquiring if DK Shivakumar and his brother DK Suresh fall under the 'one family-one ticket' category. According to the party leaders, greater clarity on the issue will be made public in the coming days. They resent why the same rule does not apply to the Gandhi family.