New Delhi: During a two-day preparatory meeting for the Lok Sabha polls held by Karnataka BJP in the city, party state in-charge Arun Singh has reportedly informed the state leaders that two or three union ministers might contest elections from the state.
According to BJP sources, discussions are underway to give party tickets to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar to contest Lok Sabha elections in the state.
Arun Singh reportedly informed the state leadership during a meeting of senior leaders at a resort in Yelahanka in Bengaluru held on January 10 and 11.
Speculations are rife that Sitharaman and Jaishankar might be fielded in the Lok Sabha elections from the constituencies where the party is in a dominant position.
Some of the constituencies that are under discussion are Bengaluru South, Bengaluru Central, Dakshina Kannada and Uttara Kannada.
Nirmala Sitharaman is currently Rajya Sabha MP representing Karnataka. The BJP is considering fielding her from the Dakshina Kannada constituency. The constituency is currently represented by former Karnataka BJP president Nalin Kumar Kateel.
Dakshina Kannada is the stronghold of the BJP. Kateel has represented the constituency thrice since 2009. BJP might consider Sitharaman as a candidate from the constituency.
Jaishankar, the diplomat-turned-politician is currently a Rajya Sabha MP representing Gujarat. Jaishankar has been frequenting Bengaluru for the past year. During the Karnataka Assembly elections, he visited the food street in VV Puram in the city.
According to BJP sources, the BJP is considering fielding Jaishankar from Bengaluru South, Bengaluru Central or Uttara Kannada constituency.