Differences have cropped up in the district units of the Janata Dal (Secular) and the Congress over the results in the elections to the Hubli-Dharwad Municipal Corporation council. Leaders have come out in the open to express their displeasure.
Two of the newly elected councillors sought permission from the leadership to speak on the issue at a felicitation function organised by the JD(S) here on Wednesday.
Altaf Kittur and Fehamida Killedar said they ought to discuss the issue in the open in the interests of the party. However, Rajanna Koravi, Hubli-Dharwad Mahanagar zilla president of the JD(S), rejected the request, saying differences could be sorted only at internal meetings. Subsequently, both of them walked out.
They alleged that the mistakes committed by the former Minister Hanumanthappa Alkod while allotting ticket to candidates led to rebel candidates entering the fray, and one of them even won the election.
Meanwhile, a few Congress leaders too have questioned the handling of the elections by the party’s district unit. They alleged that District Congress Committee president and the former Minister A.M. Hindasageri did not have an action plan for the polls, owing to which the party could not cash in on the anti-incumbency wave against the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Criticising the selection of candidates, Bhaskar N. Jituri, former secretary, Hubli-Dharwad Mahanagar Zilla Congress Committee, tendered resignation from the district executive committee.
In a letter to the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president, Mr. Bhaskar said Mr. Hindasageri violated the rules of social justice by giving 33 per cent of seats to a minority community, which affected the party’s performance.
