Siddu wants KPCC revamp
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If his body language was any indication, Opposition leader in the state Assembly Siddaramaiah, who returned to the state after meeting top Congress leaders in New Delhi, looked disappointed. The Kuruba strongman who resigned from the post of Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader last week, met both Congress president Sonia Gandhi and AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi to discuss the rejection of his nominees for the Council polls. But the big question is whether he has actually lost out or is biding his time after getting an assurance from the high command?
Sources said among the suggestions he made during his extended meeting with Mrs Sonia Gandhi was a revamp of the KPCC with a new chief to lead the state unit in next year’s polls to the Legislative Assembly. Mr Siddaramaiah reportedly suggested a repeat of strategy adopted by the party on the eve of Assembly elections in 1989 and 1999: replacement of the PCC president with a non-controversial leader. In 1989, the party swept the polls under the leadership of the late Veerendra Patil who took over the reins from B. Janardhan Poojary six months ahead of the hustings. Ditto in 1999 when Mr S.M. Krishna took charge from Mr N. Dharam Singh to help the party secure a comfortable majority in the Assembly.
The leader reasoned that Dr Parameshwar had upset a majority of the leaders and workers with his style of functioning and therefore would not be able to lead the state unit as a cohesive unit, according to sources close to Mr Siddaramaiah. The sources said Mr Siddaramaiah would probably change his mind on his resignation and attend a meeting of the CLP scheduled to be held here on June 10 to work out the strategy for next day’s polls to the Legislative Council. For now, he has decided to keep away from party meetings and travel by his private car for other engagements.
On questions related to his resignation, he said: “I have tendered my resignation. Central leaders told me that they would consult other leaders and get back to me”. To a question on the response of Mrs Gandhi to his complaints, he said, “I explained to her why my pride was hurt. This is not a battle of egos between individuals. I hold the post of CLP leader and cannot sit quiet when the post is not respected. When I told Mrs Gandhi about this, she admitted that there have been a lot of mistakes in decisions taken by the KPCC.” He did not elaborate on what these decisions were.
Asked whether he would take up the PCC president’s post if it was offered to him, Siddaramaiah said it was a hypothetical question and added, “Dr Parameshwar is our PCC president. The question does not arise.” Asked if he was being ‘ill-treated’ in the Congress because he is still considered an outsider, he said, "That is a wrong assumption. The party respects me, otherwise I would not have got the CLP leader’s post.”
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