Post reserved for General Category Woman

Notification for election of new Mayor comes amidst by-poll to MCC Ward 36 on Sept. 3

Mysore/Mysuru: Ending the suspense over election of the new Mysuru city Mayor, the authorities have announced the poll schedule, according to which the Mayoral election will take place on Aug.25.

The Mayor post had become vacant following the disqualification of Rukmini Madegowda of JD(S), whose election from MCC Ward 36 was annulled by the High Court in May last.

In a press release issued on Tuesday, the MCC Council Secretary said that the voting to elect the new Mayor will take place at Nalwadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar auditorium at 12 noon on Aug.25. The aspiring candidates can file their nomination papers on all working days from Aug.17 to 24 and also between 8 am and 10 am on Aug.25, the election day. 

The release further said that the MP, MLAs, MLCs and Corporators who have the voting rights, have been issued the notification about the poll schedule. 

The Mayor post is reserved for General Category woman. The  Mayoral poll notification for the election of a new Mayor comes amidst the by-poll to MCC Ward 36, which is scheduled for Sept.3.

After Rukmini of the JD(S) was disqualified as Mayor following the annulment of her election from Ward 36 in May last just three months into her office (Rukmini was elected Mayor on Feb.24), Anwar Baig of the Congress, who was the Deputy Mayor, was appointed as the Acting Mayor until a new Mayor was elected. 

 Mysuru Division Regional Commissioner Dr. G.C. Prakash, who is also the Electoral officer, had set June 11 as the date of election of the new Mayor. But a day before the election, the Karnataka High Court, acting on a petition from Congress Corporator Pradeep Chandra, had stayed the poll. Pradeep had moved the HC questioning the poll at a time when COVID-induced lockdown was in place.

But another Congress Corporator Shanthakumari, who is a strong aspirant for Mayor post, moved the HC questioning the stay order on Mayoral poll. The Court, which heard her petition, took note of the eased COVID situation and  ordered holding of the poll. It also directed for submission of a report by Sept.1 on the poll.

Following the Court order, the Mysuru Regional Commissioner issued a fresh poll notification, according to which the Mayoral poll will take place on Aug.25.

As no party succeeded in getting a majority of its own in the election held to the 65-member Mysuru City Corporation (MCC) in 2018, the JD(S) and Congress entered into an alliance to rule the MCC, forcing the BJP to sit in the Opposition. 

As per the agreement between the two alliance partners, the Congress got the Mayor post for the first term with each term having a tenure of one year, the JD(S) in the second term and the Congress should have got the post in the third term. Following last minute political developments in February last when the Mayoral election was held, Rukmini of the JD(S), who represented Ward 36, became the Mayor on Feb.24. But due to the High Court ruling in May, Rukmini lost her post and Anwar Baig of the Congress has been functioning as the Acting Mayor since then.

With six months into the third term having already gone, the new Mayor will stand to get only 6 months in office.

Soon after the Mayoral poll schedule was announced, the three main parties — Congress, JD(S) and BJP — began holding discussions within their party ranks on the strategy to be adopted for the Aug.25 poll. 

While the ruling combine Congress and JD(S) are hopeful of continuation of their alliance, the Opposition BJP, which has failed to get into power even once  in the civic body, too is working out plans for coming to power this time.

The MCC has a total electoral strength of 72, including 65 Corporators, one MP, MLAs and MLCs.

The JD(S) has an electoral strength of 21, who include 17 Corporators, Chamundeshwari MLA G.T. Devegowda and MLCs Sandesh Nagaraj, Marithibbegowda and K.T. Srikantegowda, who were all elected on a JD(S) ticket.  The Congress has an electoral strength of 20, including 19 Corporators and N.R. MLA Tanveer Sait. 

The Opposition BJP has an electoral strength of 25, who include 22 Corporators, MLAs L.Nagendra and S.A. Ramdas and MP Pratap Simha. This apart, there are three Independent Corporators, two  other  elected Corporators  and a BSP (Bahujan Samaj Party) Corporator, thus taking the number to 72.

MCC Ward 36 by-poll: No nominations filed on second day too

No candidate filed nomination papers on the second day on Tuesday too for the by-election to MCC Ward 36 on Sept.3. The Ward is reserved for Backward Class Category-B (woman).The by-poll has been necessitated following the HC’s annulment of the election of Rukmini Madegowda of JD(S).

The last date for filing of nomination papers is Aug.23. Polling will take place on Sept.3 and the counting of votes will be taken up on Sept.6. The JD(S) has announced that S. Leelavathi  is the party candidate for the by-poll while the Congress and BJP are yet to name their candidates.