“Davangere and Bagalkot are strong citadels of the Congress. We will try to retain them [in the bypolls],” Minister and KPCC working president Satish Jarkiholi claimed in Belagavi on Sunday.

“We are confident of winning the two seats with comfortable margins. If there is any discontent among some leaders and workers in some areas, senior leaders will work towards resolving them,” he told reporters.

He said that the probability of winning the bypolls is the main factor behind choosing the nominees in the two seats.

“Family politics is not restricted to our party or our State. It exists in the Congress and other parties and in Karnataka and other States. We need to pick candidates who have high chances of winning,” he said.

He said that Umesh Meti was chosen as the candidate in Bagalkot as it is the wish of the people and not for any other reason.

“The people of Bagalkot have immense respect for the Meti family. It will help our candidate. We have been preparing for the byelection for the last two months. Our hopes are high,” he said.

He said that he will campaign in both Bagalkot and Davangere, though he will spend more time in Bagalkot.