Chamarajanagar: With the Election Commission of India announcing the poll schedule for the Lok Sabha (LS)  polls on Sunday, political activities have gained traction in Chamarajanagar.

With sitting MP R. Dhruvanarayan of the Congress is most likely to be renominated by the party, the question doing the rounds in the district is who will be the BJP candidate to take on Dhruvanarayan in this SC reserved Constituency.

The Chamarajanagar (SC) LS seat has eight Assembly segments — Chamarajanagar, Gundlupet, Kollegal and Hanur in Chamarajanagar district and Nanjangud, T. Narsipur, Varuna and H.D. Kote in Mysuru district.

Out of the eight Assembly segments, four are currently held by the Congress, two by the BJP and one each by the JD(S) and BSP.

The seat, which has went to the Congress as per an informal understanding between the Congress and JD(S) as of now. A formal announcement on the seat sharing between the two parties is yet to come and the issue is being taken seriously taken by the Congress and so also by the BJP and BSP.

While two-term sitting MP R. Dhruvanarayan of the Congress is busy getting prepared to contest the polls again, the BJP is yet to announce its candidate. The BJP has as many as 12 aspirants for the seat — Mysuru District BJP President M. Shivanna, former MLAs Dr.N.L. Bharathi Shankar and G.N. Nanjundaswamy, former MP Kagalawadi M. Shivanna, former ZP President S. Mahadevaiah, Advocate Arun Kumar, former IAS officer K. Shivaram, retired IFS officer Dr. R. Raju, former MLC C. Ramesh, Dr. Mohan, son-in-law of former Union Minister V. Sreenivasa Prasad, retired official Dr. Mahadevappa and leader Venkataramanaswamy (Papu).

Although former Union Minister and senior BJP leader V. Sreenivasa Prasad, who in the past had represented the Constituency for five terms, had on many occasions declined to contest elections, many in the party believe that Prasad will be the most formidable candidate to take on the sitting Congress MP.

However, there are speculations that Prasad may agree to contest if the BJP high command asks him to. It is also said that Prasad may change his stand and opt to contest depending upon the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) candidate from the Constituency.

As far as the BSP is concerned, sitting Kollegal MLA N. Mahesh is in the forefront, while the name of former IAS officer Shivakumar too is doing the rounds.