Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru (SP)

Mangaluru, Feb 10: Congress party has been frantically searching for winning Congress candidates for Dakshina Kannada, Udupi-Chikkamagaluru, and Uttara Kannada Lok Sabha constituencies where the electorate appears to be tilted against it, going by the results of previous assembly and Lok Sabha elections.

Towards this end, All India Congress Committee observers and party leaders collected opinions from presidents of various units of the party at Dakshina Kannada district Congress Committee office here on Saturday February 9.

Karnataka Congress in-charge secretaries, P C Vishnunath, Manikyam Thakur and Madhu Yakshi Gowda, had been made observers of the Congress for this purpose.

A total of 92 persons gave their opinions about choosing the party candidates. Every one of them was individually interviewed, and their opinions were recorded. Individual rooms had access only to the observers and no one else.

In the meantime, as per information, more than ten persons have applied to the party, showing interest to become party candidates for the Lok Sabha election. MLC, Ivan D'Souza, former ministers, B Ramanath Rai and Vinay Kumar Sorake, Rajya Sabha member, B K Hariprasad, district youth Congress president, Mithun Rai, former Reserve Bank of India director, Naveen Bhandary, party leader from Sullia taluk, Dhananjay Adpangaya, and Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee secretary, Mamata Gatty, are said to be among the aspirants.

Udupi constituency

From Udupi constituency, former minsters Pramod Madhwarj and Vinay Kumar Sorake have evinced interest to become party candidates. Names of former vice president of NRI Karnataka Forum, Arathi Krishna, and Chikkamagaluru district Congress president, Dr Vihay Kumar, are also being coined.