V Somanna.
Credit: DH PHOTO
Chikkaballapur: In the wake of women’s outfits seeking former All India Congress Committee (AICC) president Sonia Gandhi’s intervention into the ongoing probe into alleged mass burials at Dharmasthala, Union Minister of State for Railways V Somanna on Friday said, “What does Sonia Gandhi know about Dharmasthala? She has only thought in her mind – to make her son, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi the Prime Minister.”
Interacting with journalists in Chikkaballapur, Somanna hinted at the possibility of women’s outfits being prodded by vested interests to seek Sonia Gandhi’s intervention into the Dharmasthala dispute.
“Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his team look as if they are completely worn out. It is possible that this appeal to Sonia Gandhi may have been done at the behest of those upset with Deputy CM D K Shivakumar,” quipped Somanna, while reaffirming his regard for Sonia Gandhi.
Questioning the state government for choosing Booker Prize-winning author Banu Mushtaq to flag off the Mysuru Dasara fete, the Union Minister said, “I don’t know whom Siddaramaiah is trying to please. It seems as if Siddaramaiah is seized by occasional fits of unreason.”
Disrespecting Sri Chamundeshwari, the presiding deity at the Chamundi Hills in Mysuru, would not augur well for the state and the entire country, warned Somanna, appealing to Banu Mushtaq to seek the Goddess’s forgiveness.