In a shot in the arm for the Congress party in Kodagu, its candidate Shantheyanda Veena Achaiah was on Friday elected to the Karnataka Legislative Council.
Veena Achaiah, 55, was reportedly hand-picked by Congress President Sonia Gandhi to counter the growing clout of the BJP in Kodagu. Besides, the Congress wanted to give representation to a woman candidate in the just concluded MLC election from the Assembly constituency in Karnataka.
According to political circles, Veena Achaiah could even be considered for a berth in the Siddaramaiah ministry during the next Cabinet expansion. But this is unlikely because normally MLAs are inducted into the ministry.
In the past, Jajie Mandanna and Polly Aiyappa from Kodagu have been MLCs.
Veena Achaiah is a veteran Congress leader from Kodagu and has served as district Congress president and also president of the Kodagu zilla panchayat. She is presently chairman of the Karnataka Handloom Development Corporation. She hails from Mukkodlu village in Madikeri taluk.