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Mysuru (Karnataka), Nov 3 (IANS) Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday expressed visible anger when a group of journalists repeatedly questioned him about Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar replacing him as the head of the state government, calling the speculations media-driven.
Responding to questions about Bihari community leaders in Bengaluru expressing their desire to see Shivakumar as the next Chief Minister, CM Siddaramaiah gave a sharp reply asking the reporter if there was no other topic to discuss.
“It doesn’t matter what people say. Anyone can say anything. Tell me, who is the high command?” He said in an irritated tone.
He hit back, saying, “It is Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge. Have they said anything on this? Then why raise it? You (media) are dragging the issue and raising it again and again. It is not what people say, it is you in the media who are giving it attention.”
He said, “What was the need to raise this question? The decision is of the high command. Any other comment has no importance.”
This is the second instance in recent weeks where the Chief Minister has shown irritation over questions related to a possible leadership change, as the Congress government nears the halfway mark of its tenure amid persistent infighting within the state unit.
Regarding the possible Cabinet reshuffle, Siddaramaiah confirmed that he will discuss the matter with party leaders soon after the conclusion of the Bihar elections to be held in two phases on November 6 and 11.
The exchange followed Shivakumar’s public appeal to Biharis in Bengaluru on Sunday to vote for the grand alliance in the upcoming Bihar elections.
Speaking to reporters after addressing the Bihar Association at the Coffee Board Layout in North Bengaluru, he remarked that though many had said he deserved a bigger role, what mattered more to him was his support for the alliance in Bihar.
He observed that Nitish Kumar was nearing the end of his political career and said that Tejashwi Yadav had already been named the chief ministerial candidate of the alliance.
On October 30, when Siddaramaiah was questioned about the possibility of Shivakumar becoming his successor, he lost his cool. When asked if there could be a leadership change in November as the Congress government will complete half its term, he became irked and asked who had made such statements and where were they recorded.
When journalists pointed to media reports, he challenged them to identify the publication, saying he read all the newspapers.
Earlier in the day, Siddaramaiah declined to comment on the deadline for filling Bengaluru’s potholes, which ended at midnight on Friday, and directed reporters to contact Shivakumar, who heads the Bengaluru development department.
This comment of the CM has come at a time when the discussion of internal discord is going on within the Congress.
–IANS
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