EC transfers SP of Hassan, where Deve Gowda's grandson is in fray
Bengaluru, Apr 4: The Election Commission Thursday transferred the superintendent of police of Hassan and changed an election observer in Mandya the two sensitive constituencies from where former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda's grandsons are contesting the Lok Sabha polls.
Hassan SP A N Prakash Gowda has been transferred and Chetan Singh Rathore has come in his place, while Mandya election observer Ranjit Kumar has also been changed, a senior electoral officer said.
The EC has informed the state chief electoral officer Sanjiv Kumar that it has, in response to his letter, approved the proposal for posting of Rathore in place of Gowda.
"The ECI has transferred A N Prakash Gowda. Similarly, Mandya election observer Ranjit Kumar has also been changed," chief electoral officer Sanjiv Kumar said.
The transfer of Prakash Gowda comes barely four days after the transfer of the deputy commissioner of the district Akram Pasha who has been replaced by Priyanka Mary Francis.
The BJP had alleged misuse of official machinery and had requested the Election Commission to transfer the two officers to conduct free and fair elections in Hassan.
Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy's nephew and Karnataka public works minister H D Revanna's son, Prajwal Revanna is contesting from Hassan.
Prajwal is the grandson of former prime minister H D Deve Gowda.
Kumaraswamy's son Nikhil is fighting a tough battle in Mandya, where he is pitted against multi-lingual actress Sumalatha, widow of former minister and actor Ambareesh.
BJP MP Rajeev Chandrasekhar and MLA S Suresh Kumar had submitted a memorandum to the election commission on March 28 with a list of 13 officers, including Pasha and Gowda, asking it to remove them from the irrespective districts.
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Shivakumar hosts gala dinner to mark 6 years as Karnataka Congress chief
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Tuesday threw a dinner party at a five-star hotel in the city to celebrate the completion of six years as the Congress state president.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, his cabinet colleagues and many MLAs attended the dinner party.
As Shivakumar welcomed the CM on his arrival, the latter greeted him with a bouquet and congratulated him for completing six years as the KPCC president.
Shivakumar was appointed as the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president on March 11, 2020.
He assumed the charge when the state unit was running into rough weather.
The party had lost the assembly election after five years of Congress rule from 2013 to 2018. In the face of a hung assembly, it formed a coalition government with Janata Dal (Secular), led by its ally’s second-in-command H D Kumaraswamy.
The government lasted only for a year from May 2018 to June 2019. After the fall of the coalition government, BJP led by B S Yediyurappa came to power.
Following the drubbing in 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Siddaramaiah and Dinesh Gundu Rao had resigned as the leader of the Congress Legislative Party and Congress state president respectively.
Displaying his organisational skills, Shivakumar raised the party cadres. The Congress under his leadership defeated the ruling BJP with a thumping majority in 2023 assembly election by winning 134 seats in 224-member House.
Presently, the Congress government has a strength of 140 MLAs, including the support of independents.
The Congress also managed to raise its number from just one seat from Karnataka in 2019 Lok Sabha election to nine MPs in 2024.
There has been a power tussle going on between Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar. However, the two leaders often put up a united face.
