MYSURU: Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, the BJP candidate for Mysuru-Kodagu constituency, Yaduveer Wadiyar, has already started campaigning in full swing. Sitting MP Pratap Sihma is also on the campaign trail with Yaduveer.
Yaduveer spoke at an interaction programme held with the media at a private hotel in Mysuru on Monday regarding the election campaign and said, “Our father was a four-time MP. We have relations with all parties. My thinking is compatible with that of the BJP. People have an emotional attachment to the palace. All are equal under the Constitution. I will work as a common MP and be connected through modern technology. People need not have to come to the palace, I will come out of the palace myself. I did not say this because I am a king. The palace has a legacy. Other than that, I’m pretty normal. Call me MP, representative, whatever you want”.
He further added, “There is no need for my mother (Pramoda Devi Wodeyar) to campaign on my behalf. I have come here with my mother’s blessings. There is no need for her to give a statement on my behalf, and her cooperation will always be there for me”.
Meanwhile, MP Pratap Simha said, “I will not betray the party, nor those close to me. The high command did not tell me why they gave me the ticket in 2014. I also did not ask them. Even now, I have not asked why they denied me a ticket”.
Responding to the question of whether he got any offer from the Congress party, Pratap Simha said that, “It is not relevant now. The only important thing for us is to ensure Yaduveer’s victory. The country needs Modi, we need a person from Myuru to stand on behalf of Modi, that’s all that matters to us. The party is like a mother to me. This is not just random talk, but it is from my heart”.