Karnataka CM tussle heats up: Now a Veershaiva-Lingayat pontiff seeks top posts for community

There was stiff competition between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar for the chief minister's post after the declaration of Assembly election results in May last year, and the Congress had managed to convince the latter and made him the deputy chief minister.

Chikkodi: A day after a Vokkaliga seer publicly urged Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to step down and make way for his deputy D K Shivakumar, a prominent seer from the dominant Veershaiva-Lingayat community on Friday urged that ministers from his community should be considered in case there is a change in CM post. Channasiddharam Swamiji of Srishail Peetham on Friday said that if Congress takes any decision on changing the state chief minister or decides to create more posts of deputy chief ministers, preference should be given to the legislators from Veershaiva-Lingayat community.

The seer told reporters at Yadur village in Chikkodi taluk that people from Veershaiva Lingayat community have voted for Congress in large numbers.

"If Congress wants to change chief minister or create more posts of deputy chief ministers, community members like M B Patil, Ishwar Khandre, S S Mallikarjun and veteran like Shamnur Shivashankarappa should be considered for the post. During the government formation, Veerashaiva-Lingayat votes were decisive. So Veerashaiva-Lingayat ministers should be given priority and their experience should be utilised. I urge that they should be given an opportunity."

Talks in this regard have been held with Kashi, Ujjani and other seers of Panchapeethas. There has been understanding about the post of chief minister in the Congress and the grand old party should walk the talk, he said.

Vishwa Vokkaliga Mahasamastana Math seer Kumara Chandrashekaranatha Swamiji on Thursday had raised the pitch for Shivakumar as CM at the Kempegowda Jayanti event here to commemorate the birth anniversary of Bengaluru's founder, in the presence of both Siddaramaiah and the deputy chief minister on the dais.

(With PTI inputs)