Mysuru: Can Dr Yatheendra Siddaramaiah 'do a Rakesh' and step into the shoes of his late brother, who was considered the heir apparent of the Chief Minister in his hometown, Mysuru?
With Rakesh, the ‘chikka sahebru,’ who ran the show in Mysuru in the absence of the CM, no more, Congress workers are pinning their hopes on Dr Yatheendra to fill the vacuum he has left. And the shy doctor, who has kept away from politics for years , now seems more willing to take on the mantle.
To the delight of party leaders and workers in Mysuru, he met them and others from Varuna and Chamundeswari constituencies over the weekend and also posed for photographs with supporters of Rakesh, who have still not removed his cutouts from major circles in the city.
“Rakesh handled all his father's election campaigns since 2003. He was seen as his successor by party workers in Mysuru. It was even decided that he would contest from Varuna and Mr Siddaramaiah from Chamundeswari. Rakesh personally took care of the entire district, especially these two constituencies. He handled Congress workers in Mysuru and solved most of their problems as his father was busy administering the state. Now that he is gone, we want someone from his family to take on the responsibilities he had handled.
On the day of his cremation, people of Varuna requested Mr Siddaramaiah to involve Yatheendra in politics and so on his instructions, he visited Mysuru," said Chief Minister's close aide, Seetharam, adding, “Dr Yatheendra runs a diagnostic centre in Bengaluru. He is soft by nature and is shy as he has never been in public life. But he will get over this. We are relieved and happy, and are giving him all our support.”
Congress leader, Sri Krishna, who is a member of Hampapura Zilla Panchayat in HD Kote too believes Dr Yatheendra is inclined to step into the shoes of his late brother. "Party workers requested Dr Yatheendra to enter politics and he has agreed to speak to his father about it and then take a decision. He responded positively," he said.
