Bengaluru: A month after one of the five KPCC Working Presidents R. Dhruvanarayan passed away (Mar. 11), the Congress High Command yesterday appointed former Chitradurga Congress MP B.N. Chandrappa as the new KPCC Working President in the place of late former Chamarajanagar  MP R. Dhruvanarayan.

AICC General Secretary K.C. Venugopal on Sunday issued an order to this effect following the directions of AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge. The four other KPCC Working Presidents, who were appointed over the past two years, are Eshwar Khandre, Satish Jarkiholi, Saleem Ahmed and Ramalinga Reddy.

Chandrappa, a leader of Left-hand Dalit community (Maadiga), had represented Chitradurga Lok Sabha Constituency from 2014 to 2019. He had also headed LIDKAR, a State-Government-run Leather Industries Corporation. 

Chandrappa had sought the Congress ticket from Pavagada (SC) Constituency  for the May 10 Assembly polls. But the Congress gave the party ticket to the son of sitting MLA Venkataramanappa, following which AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge had held talks with Chandrappa. Now, he has been appointed as a KPCC Working President a month ahead of the Assembly polls in place of late R. Dhruvanarayan who belonged to SC (Right hand) community.