more-in The BJP district unit released the first list of its candidates for the local body polls to the Udupi City Municipal Council (CMC) here on Monday. The list, released by Mattar Ratnakar Hegde, president of the unit, contains names of 32 candidates out of a total of 35 wards in the CMC. The party has given tickets to 26 new faces. One candidate from the minority community – Edlin Karkada – too has been given a ticket. Only six candidates had been councillors previously. Of the six candidates, three – Mahesh Thakur, Sumitra Nayak and Geeta D. Shet - were councilors in the previous Council (2013-18), while three were councillors earlier – Prabhakar Poojary (2008-13), Edlin Karkada (1996-2001) and Manjula V. Nayak (1996-2001). Ms. Karkada and Ms. Shet were earlier in the Congress party. Ms. Karkada will be fighting from Malpe Central ward, while Ms. Shet will be seeking re-election from the Kadiyali ward. In Bailoor ward, the BJP has fielded a strong candidate, Mr. Thakur, who could not fight from his own ward due to reservations, to take on the heavyweight Congress leader and sitting councillor, Ramesh Kanchan from Bailoor ward. Other candidates The list of other BJP candidates and their wards in brackets is as follows: Lakshmi M. Salian (Kola), Yogish V. Salian (Vadabhandeshwara), Sundar J. Kalmady (Kalmady), Shreesha Bhat Kodavoor (Moodabettu), Sampavati (Kodankur), Santhosh Jathanna (Nittur), Jayanti K. Poojary (Subrahmanya Nagar), Manjula V. Nayak (Gopalpura), Giridhar Acharya (Karambally), Aruna S. Poojary (Moodu Perampalli), Ashwini A. Poojary (Shettibettu), Sumitra R. Nayak (Parkala), Manjunath Shettigar (Eshwar Nagar), Kalpana Sudhama (Manipal), Bharati Prashant (Moodu Sagri), Ashok Naik (Indrali), Chandrashekhar U. Sherigar (Indira Nagar), Aurn Shettigar (Badagabettu), Srikrishnarao Kodancha (Chitpady), Raju (Kasturba Nagar), Girish M. Kanchan (Kunjibettu), Prabhakar Poojary (Gundibail), Savita H. Bhandary (Bannanje), Manasa C. Pai (Tenkapete), Rajani Hebbar (Volakadu), Jyoti R. Shetty (Kinnimulky), Rashmi C. Bhat (Ajjarkadu), T.G. Hegde (Shiribeedu), and Harish Shetty (Ambalpady). Manifesto Raghupati Bhat, MLA, said that the BJP would release its manifesto for the CMC polls in a couple of days. The Congress, which ruled the CMC, had increased the licence fee on sq.ft. basis, despite promising not to do so. The BJP, if elected, would keep the licence fee below ?500. The Congress had failed to give good governance in the CMC, he said.

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