BENGALURU: The Congress and BJP are confronting dissidence from rebels upset over the selection of candidates for bypolls to three Lok Sabha and two assembly seats scheduled on November 3.The problem is in the open in Mandya and Ramanagara, seats in which many Congress leaders have expressed displeasure over the party’s decision tie up with the JD(S).Congress leader Ravikumar Gowda, who unsuccessfully contested the assembly election from Mandya in May, has vowed not to campaign for the JD(S) candidate. In Ramanagara, too, Congress leaders are reluctant to support JD(S) candidate. They maintain an alliance between the Congress and JD (S) will only help BJP gain a foothold in the constituency.The party leadership has attempted to placate the dissenters, stating AICC president Rahul Gandhi himself took the decision to back JD (S) candidates in these seats.Several Ramanagara Congress leaders led by Iqbal Hussain, who polled over 70,000 votes in the May election, on Sunday met MP DK Suresh and requested, without any luck, that the party reconsider its decision. Iqbal is keen on contesting the bypoll in Ramanagara, a constituency with a large number of minority votes.The BJP, too, is facing a backlash over its choice of candidates for Ramanagara and Mandya. Many loyal workers have threatened to desert the party if it fields Chandrashekhar, son of Congress MLC CM Lingappa, from Ramanagara assembly seat and former bureaucrat Siddaramaiah from the Mandya Lok Sabha seat While Chandrashekhar joined the BJP week, Siddaramaiah is new to politics.In Ballari, BJP leader Srinivas, in revolt over the party backing strongman B Sreeramulu’s sister J Shantha over him, said he would contest the election as an independent.The Congress’ decision to field Anand Nyamagouda, son of late MLA Siddu Nyamagouda from Jamakhandi, has also not gone down well with local leaders. Sanathkumar Belagali, a local Congress leader, has threatened to enter the fray as an independent.

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