Bengaluru: As Chief Minister Mr H D Kumaraswamy backed off from his earlier objections to Congress going ahead with political appointments without consulting the Janata Dal (S), his elder brother and PWD Minister Mr H D Revanna has done just the opposite.
Riled about the Congress divesting Dr Parameshwar of the Home Department, and replacing him with a Siddaramaiah protégé M.B.Patil whom he will not be able to control, Mr Revanna lavished praise on the deputy CM, saying he was a good administrator, hailed from the Dalit community and had built up the party over the last eight years. "Congress will pay heavily during forthcoming elections for insulting such a leader," Mr Revanna added.
Taking a dig at Congress leaders, who were spreading rumors that Dr Parameshwar had been eased out of the home portfolio due to interference from Mr Revanna, he challenged his detractors in Congress to make Dr Parameshwar say that.
"There's a conspiracy to malign me," he said. "Even in Cabinet meetings, I have never interfered in any department, other than my own. Let Dr Parameshwar say that I had requested the transfer of even one constable in his department outside Hassan district. Being a Home Minister, there will be a lot of pressure from MLAs for police transfers,'' he said.
“A section of Congress leaders hold us brothers responsible for their mistakes. We are not scared of Congress. We will face them. We have tolerated enough. The Chief Minister has never interfered in administration of departments held by Congress, but his patience has its limits and he will not tolerate this any more,'' Mr Revanna added.
Admitting that everything was not right after the cabinet reshuffle, Mr Revanna said that he did need not dwell on specifics. "Senior Congress leaders like Mr Mallikarjun Kharge himself has said that things were not going in the right direction. What proof does one need for what is happening here?'' Mr Revanna added.
