E-Paper
Siddaramaiah seeks SC leader as next CM
Bengaluru: A day after chief minister BS Yediyurappa hinted at a possible exit, former chief minister and senior Congress leader Siddaramaiah on Friday challenged the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to name a leader from the Scheduled Caste as its next chief minister
Bengaluru: A day after chief minister BS Yediyurappa hinted at a possible exit, former chief minister and senior Congress leader Siddaramaiah on Friday challenged the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to name a leader from the Scheduled Caste as its next chief minister.
“Based on whatever directions are given by the party leadership on (July) 26, I will begin my work. There will be a special event on our government completing two years in power. After attending this event, whatever directions are given by the party leadership, I will abide by it,” Yediyurappa said on Thursday.
Reacting to this development, Siddaramaiah on Friday said: “Nalin Kumar Kateel (state BJP president) had challenged to appoint a Dalit as the CM candidate. From our party four SC leaders had been the chief ministers in the past like- Shinde (Sushilkumar Shinde) in Maharashtra, Jagannath Pahadia in Rajasthan and Damodaram Sanjeevaiah in Andhra Pradesh,” Siddaramaiah said.
He told reporters in Mangaluru that since there is an opportunity, BJP should appoint an SC chief minister. “Yediyurappa will be removed now, there is an opportunity for them (BJP), let them do it. Anyways the (chief minister’s) seat will get vacant after Yediyurappa’s exit, let them do so if they have love towards SCs. They (BJP) don’t respect social justice, but question others,” he added.
Responding to a question on Lingayat seers demanding for Yediyurappa’s continuation as the chief minister, Siddaramaiah said that it was not right on the part of pontiffs to interfere in the internal affairs of any party. “Pontiffs, from whichever community they may be, should not meddle in politics. The mandate and the opinion of the people are most important in a democracy,” he said.
Siddaramaiah also said that the Congress party will not allow the defectors to return to the party. The statement comes after six, who had joined the BJP after quitting the Congress-JD(S) coalition in 2019, on Thursday went into the chief minister’s cabin after the cabinet meeting with some paper, leading to speculations of them resigning. “I have already clarified on it in the Legislature party meeting, and I’m committed to keeping my word,” Siddaramaiah said.
Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president D K Shivakumar in Mangaluru reiterated his stand that those who want to come back to the Congress may submit applications. “Let us discuss it after they apply. There are many who wish to come to the party fold. I do not wish to name them,” he said.
However, one of the turncoat MLAs and current health minister Dr K Sudhakar dismissed the rumours of resignation. that H “Why should we resign? We have come to BJP accepting Yediyurappa’s leadership and party’s principles and ideology, and we will abide by the party high command’s decision,” he said.
“After the cabinet meeting my colleagues and I, as usual, met the Chief Minister at his chamber and came out. I inquired with the Chief Minister about the ongoing developments (about his exit), to which he said- he will abide by the direction the high command will give him on July 25 and let’s build the party together,” he added.
