Bengaluru: Even as the Jarkiholi brothers continued to exert pressure on the party top brass to keep him out of Belagavi affairs, Water Resources Minister D. K. Shivakumar on Friday described his cabinet colleague and Municipalities Minister Ramesh Jarkiholi as his "best friend". Speaking to reporters after his closed door meeting with KPCC president, Dinesh Gundurao and Deputy Chief Minister, Dr G. Parameshwar here, Mr Shivakumar said, "He (Mr Ramesh) is my friend. I will meet him soon and talk to him. I have stood by him through thick and thin,"
Mr Shivakumar's statement is seen in political circles as an effort to pacify the Jarkiholi brothers, who are demanding that the Congress party stop Mr Shivakumar from interfering in Belagavi district politics through his close aide and MLA Lakshmi Hebbalkar in the district. She has of late grown in strength in Belagavi with the help of Mr Shivakumar, and the Jarkiholi brothers therefore, feel sidelined. Meanwhile, Dr Parameshwara sought to downplay the issue, saying that the media has been blowing it out of proportion.
"It's not a major problem. There are some minor issues pertaining to the development of Belagavi and their constituencies. We will sit and sort them out. The media is simply blowing it out of proportion," he said, adding that the coalition government is stable. It is learnt that both Dr Parameshwar and Mr Rao have requested Mr Shivakumar to bury the hatchet and put an end to the political turmoil in the state. The ties between Mr Shivakumar and the Jarkiholis became frayed after the Vokkaliga strongman ensured that Ms Hebbalkar’s nominees got through in the recent PLD Bank polls much to the dismay of the Jarkiholis.
