Upset over the denial of ticket to Suryakanth Nagamarapalli, son of BJP MLA Gurupadappa Nagamarapalli, to contest the elections from the Bidar Lok Sabha constituency, BJP workers and his supporters got their heads tonsured as part of their protest in front of the party’s State headquarters here on Sunday.
Mr. Suryakanth Nagamarapalli’s supporters, who are opposing the candidature of Bhagavanth Khuba, who has been given BJP ticket, shouted slogans against the State BJP leaders for what they called meting out injustice to their leader.
A few BJP supporters demanded that the party high command issue ticket to Mr. Suryakanth to strengthen the hands of the party’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi.
Mr. Khuba is yet to file his nomination papers.
In Bidar, on Saturday, two workers of the BJP doused themselves with kerosene while taking part in a procession with a large number of people to register their protest with the district head of the BJP.
Mr. Gurupadappa Nagamarapalli alleged “match-fixing” between a few BJP leaders and Congress candidate from Bidar constituency and MP N. Dharam Singh. “Almost all BJP leaders, including Jagadish Shettar, are responsible for the denial of a ticket to my son. But I am trying to get ticket to my son,” he said.
Blaming the former Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa, Mr. Gurupadappa Nagamarapalli said that he (Mr. Yeddyurappa) had only one agenda and that was to get ticket for his associates such as Shobha Karandlaje (Udupi-Chikmagalur), Shivakumar Udasi (Haveri) and G.S. Basavaraj (Tumkur).
Mr. Suryakanth Nagamarapalli expressed the confidence that he will get the “B” form from the party before the deadline for filing nomination papers draws to a close (March 26). But sources said that the party high command is unlikely to replace its nominee at this stage.
On Friday, Mr. Gurupadappa Nagamarapalli’s supporters ransacked the party office in Bidar, after the party high command decided not to nominate Mr. Suryakanth Nagamarapalli.
The Congress has fielded Mr. Dharam Singh in Bidar, while the Janata Dal(S) has given ticket to the former Minister Bandeppa Kashempur.
