Bengaluru: Taking a dig at Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Revenue Minister V Srinivasprasad on Tuesday said he was more senior than the Chief Minister and he did not become a minister by making an appeal to others.
Reacting to queries by reporters on the demand from some quarters to drop inefficient ministers from the Council of Ministers, Mr Srinivasprasad shot back saying the Cabinet has a prideful place among people because he is a part of it.
“I am quite senior to Mr Siddaramaiah and had served in the Union Cabinet headed by Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee,” he reminded the media.
Taking exception to former Mysuru MP A.H. Vishwanath's statement on the need to drop non-performing ministers, the revenue minister said Mr Vishwanath was publicity crazy and has a bad habit of making comments on others.
“Of course, Mr Vishwanath is my close friend but it does not mean that I should tell everyone where I go and come. Has he been appointed by the All India Congress Committee to collect all these details? I do not know why he engages in loose talk.”
Not ‘at home!’ Top gun Dr G Parameshwar sits in 2nd row
Traditionally, the Home Ministry is considered only next in importance to the post of Chief Minister. But so uneasy is the relationship between Home Minister, G Parameshwar and the Chief Minister that he sits in the second row at number 13 in the state legislative assembly instead of next to Mr Siddaramaiah in the front benches as he should.
Dr Parameshwar appears to have literally been shown his place by the CM, who reluctantly took him into his Cabinet and gave him the important Home Ministry at the insistence of the party high command.
The CM’s camp is not surprisingly wary of Dr Parameshwar as he was contender for the top job and when denied it, wanted nothing less than a Deputy Chief Minister’s post.
In a not so subtle show of displeasure, the Chief Minister's secretariat, which decides the seating for ministers, allotted him seat No 24 in the third row during the first Assembly session.
This, however, did not go down well with Speaker Kagodu Thimmappa, who spoke to the secretariat staff and had him moved up to seat 13, according to sources.
But this too is not acceptable for a Home Minister, they point out, noting that such distant seating is usually seen when a Minister of State is appointed in the ministry and the Chief Minister retains the portfolio of Home Minister.
