Bengaluru: Veteran Congress leader , Adaguru H Vishwanath, who has never shied away from speaking his mind, grumbles that there is nothing like the "chinthakara chaavadi" of the past in the party today and regrets that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah takes all the decisions by himself. He believes his delay in acting against tainted ministers is damaging the government and a Cabinet makeover is essential before the state goes to the polls in 2018. Excerpts from an interview.
Where does the Congress party stand in Karnataka today?
The Congress party stands first. It is the ruling party. It may look as if it is down because of some incidents, but it will bounce back.
Ever since the watch controversy broke out, the Chief Minister and his ministers seem to have been embarrassing the party.
All these incidents have definitely embarrassed the party and the government. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is too good and wants to be good to his cabinet colleagues. And so he is delaying taking decisions both in Tanveer Sait's and Meti's cases. When the allegation against a cabinet colleague seems concrete, you as CM must get them to quit and hold an inquiry. If the minister is found not guilty, he can be taken back. But to protect the minister, you cannot embarrass the party and the government.
What is your take on the Tanveer Sait episode?
The values of the party and government cannot be harmed. Being a loyal party worker, it is Mr Sait's duty to protect its interests. He should have resigned on his own.
Has the Meti episode damaged the party?
Both the party and government's image have definitely been damaged.
When reshuffling the cabinet the CM said he wanted a free hand to restructure it so the new team could work to bring the party back to power. Do you think he has done that?
He has to choose among the 123 MLAS, and give representation based on region, caste and district. But now he needs to rush to Delhi and explain what had happened in Karnataka. Also he had better reshuffle the cabinet. It will be tough if he goes to the people in 2018 with the same team.
Why hasn't Mr Siddaramaiah achieved what he wanted?
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has achieved something. We have done many things, come out with innovative programmes, constructive schemes and projects. But somewhere his cabinet colleagues, the party workers, and the rank and file have failed to let the public know about them. He has somewhere failed to take party along with the government.
Dr G Parameswar is doubling up as both minister and president of the KPCC. This doesn't work. He must either continue as minister or as president of KPCC.
Also, unlike other governments of Chief Ministers like late Ramakrishna Hegde, there are no interactions. There is nothing like chinthakara chaavadi which we used to have before. There are no discussions. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah takes decisions by himself.
Why is no intellectual, barring freedom fighter, Doreswamy, speaking out?
Nobody is talking about the government. In democracy, people must talk, discuss, advise. But here there is nothing. No litterateur is speaking up. They have become mere government laureates. The pen has its own role in a state or country.
This includes not just the media, but also writers and litterateurs. Even the opposition is doing the same. The JDS is not taking any issue to the logical end. It only threatens to expose, but doesn't do it.
Where will the party go from here?
The Congress has to be taken to the right path. There is time. We still have one- and- a- half years to go for the 2018 Assembly elections. If we set all our wrongs right and seek people's forgiveness, the party can prosper. But if we continue as though nothing big has happened, it will be tough.
What do the old Congressmen want now?
Neither the CM nor party president takes the seniors to confidence. They don't invite them for discussions and neglect them completely.
As seniors in the party, it is our responsibility to point out flaws. But if they do not want to correct things, we cannot do anything about it.
