Cong leaders hold meet, send out unity message

Top Congress leaders huddled in the city on Saturday in what was a show of unity.

Former deputy chief minister G Parameshwara hosted over a dozen party leaders at his residence.

Leader of the Opposition Siddaramaiah, senior leader Mallikarjun Kharge, KPCC president Dinesh Gundu Rao, former union ministers K H Muniyappa, K Rahman Khan, RS member B K Hariprasad and others attended.

The meeting came at a time when the Congress is in the midst of a leadership crisis, with Siddaramaiah and Rao having resigned, owning moral responsibility for the poor performance in bypolls.

“Of late, there were reports in the media about the party. We needed to show that we’re together,” Parameshwara told reporters.

The unanimous opinion was that the party high command should take a decision soon on the resignations.

“The way forward for the party will depend on who the party president and CLP leader is,”
Parameshwara said.

Plaint against Reddy

A Congress team led by Siddaramaiah and Gundu Rao petitioned state police chief Neelamani N Raju on Saturday, seeking action against BJP MLA Somashekhar Reddy for anti-Muslim remarks he reportedly made recently.