Coalition dharma was not followed in Mandya: Rao

Karnataka Congress president Dinesh Gundu Rao on Friday admitted that coalition dharma was not followed in Mandya and the few other constituencies in the recently held parliamentary elections.

“I know the coalition dharma has not been followed in Mandya and other places. The May 23 results (when Lok Sabha poll results will be announced) will give us the right answers for all questions,” he told reporters after holding a meeting with party rebel leaders from Mandya at the Congress office.

Gundu Rao had summoned the rebel leaders to the party office and sought the clarification on their attending a dinner meeting hosted by Sumalatha, who contested as BJP-backed independent candidate against the alliance candidate Nikhil Kumaraswamy of the JD(S) in Mandya. Former ministers and rebel Congress leaders from Mandya N Chaluvarayaswamy and P M Narendra Swamy are among the rebel leaders who met Gundu Rao.

No action

Gundu Rao also said the party has decided not to take any action against the rebel leaders. “I haven’t seen the video. Even Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy has not spoken to me on the issue,” he added.

Differences have cropped up among the leaders of coalition partners for not extending full cooperation in the elections. Higher Education Minister and JD(S) G T Deve Gowda had recently admitted that some JD(S) workers voted for the BJP in the election to Mysuru-Kodagu Lok Sabha seat, causing embarrassment to the two parties.

Earlier, Chaluvarayaswamy strongly defended the rebel leaders saying that they are answerable to people in the district. “Will Kumaraswamy (the Chief Minister) help in strengthening the Congress in Mandya? We are answerable to people in the district. We have informed the KPCC chief that we have maintained distance with the JD(S) right from the beginning,” he stated.

Meanwhile, the KPCC legal cell has urged the party to take action against the rebel leaders for indulging in anti-party activities. The rebel party leaders have kept off the campaign for alliance candidate Nikhil in Mandya despite strict direction from the Congress high command. They have set a bad precedent, the legal cell chief stated in a letter to Gundu Rao.