‘If I have erred, I will try to correct myself’

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Controversies do not spare anyone, not even the soft spoken and affable KPCC president Dr G. Parameshwar. The Congress MLA from Koratagere in Tumkur district, was in the thick of a controversy recently, coming under attack from Opposition leader in the Assembly Siddaramaiah for ‘rejecting’ his nominees for the Council polls. He was accused of being partial and devoid of the qualities needed to carry everyone with him. In an interview with Deccan Chronicle, Dr Parameshwar spoke about the controversial polls, and said he was ready to change if someone found fault with him.

Excerpts:

How do you analyse AICC general secretary, Rahul Gandhi’s visit to Karnataka last week?
A lot of positive things happened. With the Assembly elections due in Karnataka in 2013, Rahulji’s visit will help us galvanise the party cadre. Frankly, we depend on him because he is a youth icon. To me, catching youngsters’ attention and bringing them to voting booths is very important and Rahulji’s visit will set the ball rolling for this. His address at the youth Congress convention at Hubli is sure to reinvigorate Youth Congress workers. In Davanagere, he interacted with block and DCC presidents and workers who gave several suggestions with a few lodging complaints as well. One common opinion that emerged was that he should announce candidates for the Assembly elections well in advance. Rahulji also wanted to know how many times the party ticket is given to a candidate who keeps winning elections five or six times or even more. Perhaps, his idea was that second rung leaders may not grow in these constituencies which are represented by the same candidate for a long time. I feel the visit will help build the organisation and prepare the cadre for the election.

Weren’t there complaints against the KPCC president and the AICC general secretary in charge for Karnataka (Madhusudhan Mistry)?
They were healthy comments. The complaints against me pertained to the appointment of KPCC office bearers. Mr Gandhi did not reply to them saying it was the AICC general secretary in charge of the state who should deal with such issues. I consider the complaints against me as constructive suggestions. If there are shortcomings, I am ready to correct myself. They are our party workers and I believe they have every right to express their opinions.

Moving on to the process of selecting candidates for the Council polls from the Legislative Assembly constituency, why do you think the controversy erupted?
Mrs Sonia Gandhi was not in Delhi when the process started. I still do not know why the leaders in Delhi did not call us for a discussion. I think this was the reason which led to the confusion. I did discuss the candidates with Mr Siddaramaiah. In fact, he gave his list which was seen by the high command. Iqbal Ahmed Saradagi was nominated because the party wants to promote leaders from north Karnataka.

Siddaramaiah resigned from the CLP leader post because he was upset with you. It is clear from his statements that he wants to become KPCC president.
I am not aware of this nor do I think so. In the Congress, it is the party high command which decides on these issues. It was Soniaji who appointed me and of course, she can take any decision on this issue.

Mr Siddaramaiah's associates said he was sidelined in the KPCC. Comment.
You can ask any senior leader about my style of functioning. I consult them on all major policy decisions and Mr Siddaramaiah is no exception. If I have erred, I am ready to correct myself. I have no ego issues.

The Congress has fielded a fourth candidate though you do not have the required votes. Are you confident of getting your candidate elected?
Yes, I am. A candidate needs 18.56 votes to be precise, but we will allot each of them 19 votes. The fourth candidate needs five more votes to sail through. We will cast the second preference votes of all the 72 MLAs for the fourth candidate. Whether you like it or not, caste is an important factor. And the MLAs in other parties who belong to the same caste as our fourth candidate, M.R. Seetharam, may support him. I feel a few independents too will support us. So, we are confident of winning the fourth seat.

If Mr Seetharam loses to Independent candidate Bhairati Suresh, do you think the party will take disciplinary action against Siddaramaiah? You know that it was Mr Siddaramaiah who had recommended Bhairati Suresh's name to the party to make him an official nominee.
I will not react to hypothetical questions. I am sure all my MLAs will stand by our candidates. As CLP leader, the onus is on Mr Siddaramaiah to ensure the victory of all the four. Generally, we dissociate ourselves from a leader or a candidate who goes against the party diktat. I hope Mr Siddaramaiah has dissociated himself from the independent candidate.

Just before the Kuruba rally in Davangere, you had said that there was nothing wrong in organising a community rally. But, the Kuruba rally at Davangere sent out a message that Siddaramaiah should become the chief minister.
There is nothing wrong in a leader wanting to be CM. We should not think of who should become CM at this stage. Our job is to bring the party back to power. We have not reached that stage where leaders sit together and discuss who should become the CM. It is the party high command which decides this. For argument’s sake, if the high command says that Mallikarjun Kharge should become chief minister, what can I do? No one can stop Mr Kharge from becoming CM.

Isn't it a disadvantage for you not to project a CM candidate when other parties do this based on the caste configuration and woo voters?
This is a policy of our party. But as political circumstances change, the party may think of this. As of now, the party has not changed its policy not to project a leader as CM candidate.