BENGALURU/NEW DELHI: BJP and Congress leaders took swipe at each other on Friday during the poll battle in Karnataka as electioneering gathered pace in the southern state with almost a month left for polling. While the Congress taunted BJP over "delay" in the declaration of its candidate`s list, Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai hit back saying that the opposition party in the state did not have candidates on many seats and got them from other parties. The two parties also sparred over the Karnataka government`s decision to remove religious minorities from the backward classes list, which gave them four per cent reservation, and putting them under the 10 per cent quota for economically weaker sections.


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Bommai said that the BJP`s central leadership will decide the candidates and the state unit recommend a panel of names. "We will have a meeting on April 8-9 and apparently, tickets will be distributed on April 10. The process of ticket selection is going on as per the rules. We held meetings for three consecutive days and took the opinion of party workers, leaders and people. The final list will be discussed as we have cleared 3 names (for each constituency)," he said. He also responded to Congress leader DK Shivakumar's remarks that they will undo the decision of the BJP government concerning the reservation of religious minorities in the backward classes list.


"They can't touch it, let`s see what they can do," Bommai said.Congress leader Siddaramaiah, who is seen as a chief ministerial aspirant if Congress wins the polls, said the party is hopeful of winning at least 130 of 224 seats. He said this is going to be his last election and he will retire from electoral politics. Siddaramaiah said his relationship with Karnataka Congress president DK Shivakumar is cordial. "I am contesting from Varuna assembly constituency as my native village comes under this constituency. This is going to be my last election. I will retire from electoral politics. My relationship with DK Shivakumar (Karnataka Congress president) is cordial. There are no differences between us. Of course, differences exist in democracy but it is not detrimental to the interests of the party," he told ANI.


The former chief minister said that Congress is expecting more than 130 seats this time and the party will come to power with a comfortable majority on its own. He said that people have decided to change the government. Siddaramaiah attacked the Chief Minister and the ruling BJP. "BJP is a sectarian party. Ours is a secular party. There can`t be any disparity among the people of Karnataka. I treat all human beings equally whether they belong to Hindu, Muslim, Christian, or any other community or religion, I treat them all equally," he told ANI.


Siddaramaiah alleged that Basavaraj Bommai failed 'miserably' to protect the interest of Kannadigas and doesn't deserve to continue as CM. "Modi and Shah are coming to Karnataka to get votes and claim it's a double-engine govt but Maharashtra government is blatantly interfering with the freedom of the state," he said. He also hit out at BJP over its move on reservations. "Recategorising (of reservation) is not proper, not constitutional. It is not valid... We`ve no objection to increasing the reservation of Vokkaliga and Lingayat but why you abolished the reservation of Muslims... It clearly shows vendetta, hate politics," the Congress leader said. 


A former Chief Minister, Siddaramaiah said he is contesting from Varuna assembly constituency as it has been cleared by the party`s central leadership. "It`s not that I am interested to contest but Kolar people want me to contest from there," he said. 


Congress and Janata Dal-Secular have announced 166 and 93 candidates respectively so far for the Karnataka polls. DK Shivakumar took a dig at BJP and said while Congress has released two lists of candidates for assembly polls in the state, the BJP has not been able "to release even its first list". He also said that if Congress forms a government in Karnataka it will change the BJP government`s decision to remove religious minorities from the backward classes list, under which they got four per cent reservation.


"Till now, Congress party has released two lists of candidates and discussions are going on for a third list and as soon as possible Congress will release the third list too. But the BJP could not be able to release even its first list yet," Shivakumar told the media here. Shivakumar also took potshots at AIMIM leader Asaduddin Owaisi. "I don`t want to discuss much on that. Asaduddin Owaisi, he is like A team, B Team and C Team of BJP. People of Karnataka are very intelligent and Congress will make government," Shivakumar said.


Congress on Thursday announced its second list of 42 candidates for the Karnataka polls. No decision has yet been taken on who would contest from Kolar. "BJP government removed four per cent reservation for minorities which is against the law and the minority (community) is going to support the Congress party. After the Congress government is formed, we will protect the right of minorities and reservation policy will be changed," Shivakumar added. 


The BJP government in Karnataka has decided to remove religious minorities from the backward classes list and redistributed the four per cent quota. The minorities, it said, will get reservation under the 10 per cent quota for economically weaker sections. The Karnataka BJP also hit back at Shivakumar. "DK Shivakumar clarified that we will cancel the reservation given to Okkaliga, Veerashaiva-Lingayat, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. For appeasement politics, the right of these communities to be uprooted INC Karnataka will be punished accordingly," the party said in a tweet.


Congress MP Randeep Surjewala, who is AICC incharge of Karnataka, alleged that Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is "panic-striken" as it has not announced its first list of candidates for the Karnataka Assembly elections. "Because Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai is unwilling to fight election from his seat and his ministers don't want to contest from their seats either. All are running away from their seats. Nobody wants to contest the election therefore, they`re dependent on film stars & rowdy sheeters...," he alleged.


Karnataka Health Minister K Sudhakar said that the BJP has always ensured social justice while distributing tickets for elections. "Let`s wait for one more day. BJP has always given a lot of opportunities to the youth and women and has maintained social justice. Above all, we have always given priority to workers of the party. So the party is different from all other parties today," he said. He said Congress does not have clarity on its chief ministerial candidate in the upcoming election. "I am seeing more Surjewala than Siddaramaiah and DK Shivkumar. Let them decide on one face how can they say both? They (Congress) are not clear, they have no clarity on who will become the CM face. We have clarity, we have our PM under whose guidance govt will run and we have an able, efficient CM Basavaraj Bommai who is also the chairman of the campaign committee," Sudhakar said.


Meanwhile, Janata Dal-Secular has written to the Election Commission to stop the show starring Kannada actor Kiccha Sudeep and advertisements featuring him till the end of the elections, in view of the fact that his films, advertisements, posters etc can influence votes as he is currently recognized as BJP`s star campaigner. "Mr Sudeep, does a press conference along with Karnataka CM and invitation to all media sent on letterhead of BJP. He really says that he is going to do whatever CM says, he adheres to a political party, so he is a politician. According to rule of law of the land, any person who has political affiliation, cannot be seen on a public platform. That`s the reason, we have requested EC to look into the matter of Sudeep`s movies, OTT platforms, advertisements...." JD-S leader Tanveer Ahmed said.


Sudhakar reacted to the JD-S move. "It doesn`t matter whether they show it on TV or not. Kichcha Sudeep is a hugely popular actor, when he goes in favour of our people, for campaigning we will definitely have great support from the cadre and also he will fetch us votes and seats". The Karnataka assembly elections will be held in a single phase on May 10 with the counting of votes scheduled on May 13.