JOIN USDon't float my name as Karnataka CM candidate, Siddaramaiah tells MLAs
Seeking to put an end to the “CM face” controversy, Congress Legislature Party leader Siddaramaiah on Thursday asked party legislators not to float his name as the next chief minister candidate of the party.
Speaking to media persons, Siddaramaiah said, “Nowhere have I stated that I want to become the chief minister. I request the party legislators to not float my name as a CM candidate,” the senior leader said.
There are still two more years for the Assembly elections in the state. Hence, there is no need to talk about a CM candidate at this juncture. The party’s high command will decide who should be the candidate, after holding consultations with legislators and only after the elections are over, he said.
Siddaramaiah’s comments come in the wake of several Congress legislators recently demanding that he be made the party’s CM candidate in the upcoming Assembly elections.
Meanwhile, KPCC president D K Shivakumar, quipped that there have been many instances in the state’s political history where, along with those who have won the elections, those who have lost the polls too have become the chief minister.
Former chief ministers Devaraj Urs and Ramakrishna Hegde are examples. “You too should contest,” he told media persons in a sarcastic response to Congress leader G Parameshwara’s supporters who, on Thursday, cheered for him as the next CM of Karnataka.
He also lashed out at Revenue Minister R Ashoka who had recently commented that the Congress party’s problems were stemming from a weak high command. “Ashoka must focus on bigger problems on his plate,” D K Shivakumar said.
The Karnataka Congress on Thursday also launched a campaign to collate data on the Covid-19 crisis, including deaths and job losses among people. Accordingly, party leaders will visit houses beginning from the block-level and help the public cope with the crisis, he said.
The state government has underplayed the Covid-19 deaths. The actual numbers are five times the official data, he alleged. Further, even though the state government has announced financial packages, not many are able to access them. Congress leaders will not only gather data on the same, they will also help people apply for the financial aid, he added.