“I was hoping to see my husband seek approval for the Rs one lakh crore state Budget during the coming Legislature session beginning on July 16. It saddens me when I realise the political situation did not allow him the opportunity,” rued Datty Gowda, wife of former Chief Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda, soon after her husband submitted his resignation to Governor H.R. Bhardwaj on Wednesday.
The disappointment in her voice vanished as she recounted how happy she was with thousands of supporters, friends, family members and well-wishers rallying behind her husband, even on the day he demitted office.
“I was overwhelmed to see so much appreciation, affection and admiration for my husband from all quarters today. I know that it did not come easy. He has worked hard to build this reputation. Over the last 11 months as chief minister, he has proved himself, earned an impeccable image for him and the Party. I am proud of him,” said an emotional Datty.
Has the exit of DVS been a bit too hasty? His wife has no reason to believe this as she feels his good work is bound to create better opportunities for him. “He has earned praise from the central leadership, which gave him 100 on 100 marks. He has gained respect of the people, even the Opposition, the Governor and a senior leader like Advaniji. What more do you want in life?” asks Datty, who was however unable to hide the hurt caused by the sudden decision of the party to replace DVS.
“I do not know why the High Command took this decision. It has hurt me because he had to step down in a hurry, for no fault of his. But I respect my husband’s decision as he has been loyal to the party and always accepted the party decision as final. But he should have been allowed to at least complete a year on August 4,” confided Datty.
Last year, it was former CM B.S. Yeddyurappa, who chose DVS as his successor and now, the same leader had ousted DVS. But surprisingly Datty says it has not made her family bitter. “Yeddyurappa is a big leader of the party and we continue to respect him a lot. He is a good man. But I don’t know what transpired between the two. My husband never engages in loose talk about others. He still respects Yeddyurappa,” said Datty adding that what mattered was not how long one is in power but what he does with the opportunity.
“Power is not permanent and we were aware of it from the beginning. Eleven months have passed like eleven days. At times, he (DVS) would feel low and tell us he wanted to quit. But I encouraged him and asked him not to give up as the party had given him a big responsibility. If he had still chosen to quit, I would support him. I wondered how he handled 21 portfolios and felt it was nothing short of a Guinness Record,” said Datty, adding that the only time she felt let down was when he could not spend enough time with the family as promised.