Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah to contest from second assembly seat

Bengaluru: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah will contest also from Badami assembly constituency in the state's Vijayapura district in addition to Chamundeshwari in Mysuru, a Congress official said on Saturday. "Siddaramaiah will contest from two assembly segments -- Chamundeshwari and Badami, where he will file nomination on Monday," party's state unit spokesman Ravi Gowda told IANS here. Elections to the 225-member state assembly, including one nominated will be held in a single phase on May 12 and votes will be counted on May 15. Though the Congress high command is yet to release names of candidates for the five remaining seats after the first list of 218 names on April 15, Siddaramaiah's nomination from Badami makes him the only leader in the ruling party to contest from two seats in the state. "This is the first time Siddaramaiah is contesting from two seats in response to demand from the party's cadres and his supporters from the Kurba community he belongs to," said Gowda. Siddaramaiah, 69, filed nomination on Friday at Chamundeshwari from where he contested seven times and won five times since 1983. Though he had won from Varuna in Mysuru district twice since 2008 assembly elections, he shifted to Chamundeshwari, paving way for his son Yatindra to contest from his home constituency. Yatindra too filed nomination from Varuna on Friday. BJP's Chief Ministerial candidate B.S. Yeddyurappa's second son B.Y. Vijayandra is also contesting from Varuna though they hail from Shivamogga district. In his affidavit, Siddaramaiah declared total assets valued at Rs 20.3 crore, including that of his wife, Parvathi, and those inherited from his Hindu Undivided Family. Siddaramaiah is also the party's second chief minister to have completed a 5-year tenure 40 years after D. Devaraj Urs (1972-78). The veteran state leader joined the Congress from the Janata Dal-Secular in August 2006. "The party will announce names for the remaining four seats - Shantinagar in Bengaluru central, Kittur, Nagthan, Sindgi and Raichur in the state's northwest region. The party has decided to support Swaraj India candidate Darshan Puttannaiah, son of the state's farmer leader, the late K.S. Puttanaiah, who was a legislator from Melukote in Mandya district.