Bengaluru: AICC general secretary in- charge of Karnataka, K C Venugopal, appears to have persuaded former MP, A H Vishwanath to stay back in the Congress party despite his differences with Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.
Till last week Mr Vishwanath seemed all set to join the Janata Dal (Secular) and contest the 2018 assembly polls from Hunsur on its ticket. Even the date had been set for his induction into the JD(S), which was scheduled for the first week of June. But going by party sources, the veteran Congress leader changed his mind following assurances by Mr Venugopal and other state leaders that everything would be set right in the party in the next four to five months.
Sources close to him reveal that he discussed the possibility of his joining the JD(S) with people of his community and his aides and was discouraged from going ahead.
While the Congress high command had reportedly advised KPCC chief, Dr G Parameshwar to persuade Mr Vishwanath not to join a regional party like JD(S) which was controlled by just two people , Mr H D Deve Gowda and Mr H D Kumaraswamy, the fact that not all JD(S) leaders were happy with his induction seems to have been a factor in his decision as well. With JD(S) MLA , G T Deve Gowda openly expressing his resentment at the Hunsur ticket going to Mr Vishwanath when he was eyeing it for his son, his supporters believe that the Congress leader may not win from the constituency as the former’s Vokkaliga loyalists would not work for him. Although he may have decided to stay back, Mr Vishwanath appears from muzzled and is reportedly planning to hold a meeting of “thinkers” on June 2 or 3 to expose the Chief Minister's claims about his government working for the welfare of all. When contacted, the veteran leader neither confirmed nor denied his staying back in the Congress, and merely said he would announce his decision in a couple of days.
