Bengaluru: The ruling Congress party is bracing for a battle of nerves in Bengaluru after city strongman R. Ramalinga Reddy was denied a cabinet berth, with Bengaluru mayor and Reddy loyalist, Gangambike Mallikarjun meeting AICC general secretary, K.C. Venugopal and insisting that her mentor be included in the cabinet, failing which she was prepared to resign from the mayor's post.
Speaking to Deccan Chronicle, a senior Congress leader said, "Ms Mallikarjun was quite straightforward when she said she was ready to quit as mayor if her leader (Mr Reddy) was not inducted into the Kumaraswamy ministry."
According to Ms Mallikarjun, as many as seven to 10 Congress corporators would join her and quit en masse if nothing was done to placate Mr Reddy.
Congress sources said Mr Venugopal, who met a delegation of Reddy supporters including the Bengaluru mayor and corporators, made a determined effort to convince them to wait till the 2019 Lok Sabha polls are over.
