Bengaluru: Stoking a fresh controversy, expelled Mandya KPCC member Sachidananda claimed on Saturday that followers of defeated Congress legislators of the district had worked for independent candidate, Sumalatha Ambareesh, in the Lok Sabha poll with the knowledge of some state leaders of the party.
Speaking to reporters in Mandya, he alleged that these state Congress leaders were aware of the fact that the followers of former Congress legislators from Mandya, N Cheluvarayaswamy, P.M. Narendra Swamy, Chandrashekar and Ramesh Bandisiddegowda, were working for Ms Sumalatha during the election, but didn't do anything to stop them.
“These ex-MLAs may have stayed away from the poll campaign but their followers actively campaigned for Ms Sumalatha from day one with the permission of the state leaders,” he charged, implying that the Congress leaders had given their tacit approval to the former legislators' support for Ms Sumalatha, wife of the late actor/politician, M H Ambareesh, as they were aware from the start of their discontent with the party giving up the constituency to the Janata Dal (Secular) and the latter's decision to field Mr Nikhil Kumaraswamy, son of the Chief Minister from it.
The expelled Congress leader's claim could kick up a fresh row as it only confirms Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy's accusation that Congress leaders failed to follow the “coalition dharma” during the Mandya poll.
Going by sources, he could discuss the hostility of the Mandya leaders to his party during the elections with Congress president, Rahul Gandhi.
