Belagavi, 19 May

Gali Janardhan Reddy's wife, Aruna Lakshmi, is expected to contest as either an Independent or from BJP in the Gangavati in Koppal district by-polls. Reddy was recently disqualified after being found guilty of illegal mining and sentenced to seven years of imprisonment.

Reddy floated his own political outfit KRPP (Kalyan Rajya Pragati Paksha) after being denied a ticket by the BJP and won the election. However, his arrest mandated the by-polls.

Aruna Lakshmi contested from Ballari city assembly constituency from KRPP in 2023 but lost to Congress’ Nara Bharat Reddy by huge margin of 80,744 to 46,171 votes.

Given the margin of defeat, the chances of her getting a BJP ticket are low, even though gormer BJP MPs Karadi Sanganna, Paranna Munavalli and former MLC HR Shrinath indicated support.

Although the dates for the by-poll haven’t been announced yet, other names in the fray include Iqbal Ansari and Basavaraj Hitnal. Ansari, who lost to Janardhan Reddy in 2023, may be hoping for a change of luck. Hitnal, meanwhile has never contested from Gangavati, but is rumoured to be looking for a Congress ticket.