Bhagirathi Murulya is an Indian politician who was first elected to office in 2023 [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] as a member of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly representing the Sullia constituency. [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] She is a member of the women's and children's welfare committee. [11] This seat had previously been held for six terms by Angara S., before Murulya was selected as a BJP candidate. [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] Murulya belongs to the Tulu-speaking Adi Dravida community, [18] and she was the poorest candidate to win a seat in the assembly. [19] Murulya had worked as a tailor and a teacher before becoming a MLA. [20] Murulya took the oath in the name of her family deity. [21]
Murulya, the BJP candidate [22] [23] [24] secured the seventh consecutive victory for her party in Sullia, [25] [26] and became the first Dalit woman from Tulu Nadu to enter the legislative assembly. Sullia, one of 19 assembly segments in coastal Karnataka, was the only reserved constituency for a scheduled caste candidate in the election. [27] She defeated her closest rival, Krishnappa from the Congress party, by 30,864 votes, and took 57% of the vote share. Murulya had previously served as a member of the councils (panchayat) for Dakshina Kannada zilla and Sullia taluk. [1] [28]