Vishwanath accuses Siddaramaiah of blocking Tanveer Sait's Cabinet berth

Veteran politician A.H. Vishwanath on Wednesday squarely blamed former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah for six-time MLA Tanveer Sait being left out of the State Cabinet. Addressing a press conference in Mysuru, Mr. Vishwanath, without naming Mr. Siddaramaiah directly, alleged that the former Chief Minister was instrumental in denying Cabinet berths to both Mr. Sait and MLC Gayathri Shante Gowda.

“It is his selfishness. He did not want his son to lose the post of Minister in charge of the district because Mr. Sait is senior to him,” Mr. Vishwanath said. He further alleged that Mr. Siddaramaiah opposed Mr. Sait’s induction as his seniority would have strengthened his claim to become Mysuru district in-charge Minister, potentially displacing Urban Development Minister Yathindra Siddaramaiah.

Mr. Vishwanath also held Mr. Siddaramaiah responsible for criticism over the absence of women in the expanded Cabinet. “The former Chief Minister threatened Ms. Gayathri Shante Gowda against taking the oath of office,” he alleged. He noted that although Ms. Gayathri Shante Gowda belongs to the Kuruba community, Mr. Siddaramaiah faced criticism for neglecting Kuruba leaders from North Karnataka. “No leader from the Kuruba community in North Karnataka was inducted into the Cabinet during his tenure,” he said, alleging that Mr. Siddaramaiah instead ensured the inclusion of his son and Byrathi Suresh in the Ministry.

Mr. Vishwanath, however, praised Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar for his governance and his handling of the Cauvery river water dispute. He said previous Chief Ministers had failed to initiate direct dialogue with their Tamil Nadu counterparts on the contentious issue, whereas Mr. Shivakumar had responded positively to a proposal for holding direct talks with Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Vijay Joseph on the issue.

Mr. Vishwanath also criticised the bandh called by pro-Kannada organisations on August 13 over the Cauvery issue. He questioned the purpose of the shutdown, saying it would only deprive daily wage earners and other poor people of their livelihood for a day without serving any meaningful purpose.

Additionally, Mr. Vishwanath backed the demand for Legislative Council Chairman Basavaraj Horatti to step down. He said that with the Congress securing a majority in the Legislative Council, it was entitled to elect its own Chairman. Mr. Horatti, who has been elected to the Council eight times, should gracefully vacate the office, he said. “Whichever party enjoys a majority in the House has the right to elect its own member as Chairman. You should resign and leave. If you continue to hold on to the post stubbornly, it is undemocratic,” Mr. Vishwanath said.