Bengaluru: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and several other leaders in the Congress party are waiting for the pressure to build up from within as well as outside so that they can ensure primary and secondary education minister, Tanveer Sait, who is embroiled in a controversy over watching sleazy clippings on his mobile during Tipu Jayanti celebrations, is dropped.
Speaking to Deccan Chronicle, a senior leader in the party disclosed that the leaders are waiting for the pressure to mount on Mr Sait. “It is very evident from Mr Siddaramaiah’s statement that he was buying time for himself to gauge the situation. Mr Sait is not what Mr George or PWD minister, Dr H.C. Mahadevappa are to him.” Though Mr George was named in the FIR in the DySP M.K. Ganapati suicide case, the CM ensured his return to the Cabinet after the probe gave him a clean chit.
Going by media reactions given by Mr Siddaramaiah to the Sait episode, it is clear that he might consider dropping the controversial minister only if the situation reaches boiling point. “It is a known fact that Mr Sait and Mr Siddaramaiah have never shared a high degree of camaraderie though they are from the same district, Mysuru, but they were never rivals either. Hence, it is difficult to predict how this situation will develop,” the source explained.
The source added that there is a lot of annoyance over Mr Sait’s explanation after the entire episode was shown on TV. “After Mr Sait’s not so convincing statements defending himself after the sleaze episode were flashed on channels, most senior leaders have expressed their displeasures, with party veterans B. Janardhan Poojary and A.H. Vishwanath leading the pack,” the source contended.
The source added that the channel against which Mr Sait has filed a defamation case, will certainly keep the issue boiling with opposition parties sure to add fuel to it. Once the Chief Minister feels Mr Sait’s position has become untenable, he might consult party central leaders and ask the minister to resign from his post ahead of the scheduled winter session of the legislature in Belagavi.
