Veteran journalist, Siddaramaiah aide set to make it to Karnataka Legislative Council: Who is Dinesh Amin Mattu?
Dropping a hint regarding Mattu's candidature being finalised, Karnataka Deputy CM and state Congress chief D K Shivakumar on Wednesday told the media in Delhi, 'A tentative date has been fixed to announce the candidates. (The names will be announced) before the Assembly session starts. We are accommodating one media person.'
A well-known Kannada journalist, Mattu was associated with popular daily Prajavani, starting in 1989 and served as the publication's Delhi correspondent for around a decade. He gained recognition due to his column 'Dehali Nota (Delhi view)'. Mattu, who has also authored several books, was appointed Siddaramaiah's media advisor during his first term.
He is counted as part of progressive Left-leaning circles in the state and participated in several movements in Karnataka. He was conferred with the Karnataka Rajyotsava Award in 2023 for his contributions to journalism.
Sources said the list of candidates was revised several times as factions within the Congress wanted to ensure that their candidates made the cut. 'The Siddaramaiah camp is pushing Mattu's candidature, saying he will be an effective voice in the Council to counter the Opposition,' a source said.
At present, four seats in the state's Upper House are vacant. Two of them have remained vacant since October last year after the terms of Congress MLCs Venkatesh and Prakash Rathod ended. Another fell vacant in November last year after former BJP MLC C P Yogeshwar crossed over to the Congress and won the Assembly bypoll from Channapatna, the seat vacated by Union Minister H D Kumaraswamy after he was elected to the Lok Sabha from Mandya. The fourth seat fell vacant this January after the term of JD(S) leader K A Thippeswamy's term ended. The Congress is set to win all four seats in the 75-member House, taking its tally to 37.
While the names of the other three candidates are still under wraps, sources said Aarti Krishna, the deputy chairperson of the NRI Forum of Karnataka, is one of the front runners along with former MLCs Ramesh Babu and B L Shankar, KPCC treasurer Vinay Karthik, and filmmaker Baraguru Ramachandrappa.
Meanwhile, amid the buzz of a change of guard in the state, Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar arrived in Delhi. On Wednesday, Shivakumar met AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and a group of legislators from the state. The two then held a meeting with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and are likely to meet Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Thursday.
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