K'taka: Why Krishna is not in Congress' list of candidates

The Congress' list of 84 candidates for the forthcoming Karnataka elections doesn't include former chief minister S M Krishna, who had been re-inducted into the party with much fanfare.

According to sources, Krishna preferred to campaign for the party in the upcoming polls, rather than contest from his constituency Maddur. His re-induction in the party had sent waves of dissent among other leaders, who thought that the party was trying to rope him in as a Chief Ministerial candidate. Congress leader D C Thammanna is now contesting the election from Maddur.

The party leadership also took a conscious decision to avoid candidates whose relatives rank high in the party hierarchy. Sources in the Congress told rediff.com that they did not want the voters to feel that Congress follows dynasty politics.

The Congress has not considered several candidates whose relatives hold high positions in the party. Prominent among those are Nivedit Alva, son of senior leader Magaret Alva and Abdul Rehman Sharrief, grandson of former minister and Congress leader Jaffer Sharrief.

The party has also decided against giving tickets to candidates like Shivrame Gowda, who have lost the elections twice in a row. The Karnataka elections will be a tough battle and the Congress wants to ensure a winning combination.

The Congress has not given tickets to several former Members of the Legislative Council. Several Members of Parliament, who were aspiring for a party ticket, were also disappointed.