D K Shivakumar rules out contesting in Channapatna bypoll
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Friday ruled out contesting in the Channapatna bypoll.
He even wondered aloud why there would be bye-elections in Kanakapura assembly segment from where he is an MLA.
Two days ago, Shivakumar said, “A significant change in my political career happened from Channapatna. I have come to Anjaneya temple in Kengal to start a new chapter in my political career."
This gave rise to speculations that he was willing to contest from Channapatna assembly segment, which fell vacant after MLA H D Kumaraswamy won the Mandya Lok Sabha election.
BJP MLA and former minister S Suresh Kumar called the purported ‘bypoll in Kanakapura’ a ‘Tughlaq like decision’ and wastage of public money.
“Why will there be any bye-election in Kanakapura? I am an MLA from Kanakapura and the state president of my party (Congress). There is a responsibility on me. This is my region and I am a leader there,” Shivakumar told reporters on Friday.
“Me and Chief Minister Siddaramaiah will lead the elections (in Channapatna),” he added.
Explaining further, Shivakumar said he has only asked people there to support him. “I am from that district (Ramanagara). I have asked the voters there to give us strength.... They will favour us if they trust us,” the DCM said.
Commenting on those who criticised him, Shivakumar said, “Those who are writing obituary of my political career should know that there is a bigger power behind me, which is people’s power.”
Earlier, BJP state President B Y Vijayendra said it was left to the Congress to decide who should contest from Channapatna. He, however, pointed out that D K Suresh who lost from Bengaluru Rural constituency as Congress candidate had thought that he was invincible.
Speaking to reporters in New Delhi, Kumaraswamy, whose resignation as MLA is necessitating the Channapatna bypolls, said Shivakumar was showing affection for Channapatna now but had not visited the place in the past one-and-a-half years.
It’s been more than a year since Shivakumar became the deputy chief minister; the person who had never been to Channapatna all these days is showing his affection for that constituency and he is talking about it, he said.
“Who had stopped him from developing Channapatna till now? What was his brother’s (D K Suresh) contribution to Channapatna?” he asked.
On June 19, Shivakumar paid obeisance to Lord Hanuman and blew the bugle of the election campaign in Channapatna.
His statement that a new chapter in my political career would start from Channapatna made people speculate that he would contest from Channapatna.
It was perceived in the political circles that after winning from Channapatna, Shivakumar will resign from Kanakapura constituency creating a vacancy for his brother Suresh to contest and win the polls.
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NEET student hangs self in Rajasthan's Sikar
Jaipur (PTI): A student preparing for the NEET examination allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself in a rented room in Rajasthan's Sikar on Friday, police said.
According to the police, the student allegedly hanged himself from a ceiling fan using his sister's scarf while one sister was attending coaching classes and the other was in the bathroom.
He had appeared in the NEET UG exam 2026, which was cancelled due to paper leak, they said.
Udyog Nagar SHO Rajesh Kumar said that the deceased, identified as Pradeep Meghwal, was a resident of Kanika ki Dhani village in Jhunjhunu's Gudha Gaudji area.
He had been living in a rented room in Sikar's Jaldhari Nagar area with his two sisters while preparing for NEET over the last three years.
His elder sister later found him hanging and informed the landlord and police after bringing him down, officials said.
The SHO said the body was kept at SK Hospital mortuary, and a postmortem had not been conducted.
The student's father, Rajesh Kumar Meghwal, told police that Pradeep's NEET examination had gone well and the family was expecting him to score around 650 marks.
Former Rajasthan deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot expressed grief over the incident and linked it to anxiety among students after reports of irregularities and paper leaks in NEET 2026.
Pilot said repeated paper leak incidents and cancellation of examinations were affecting students' mental health and demanded a time-bound investigation and strict action against those responsible.
