Siddu: Will I be 3rd time lucky?

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Congress Legislature Party leader Siddaramaiah on Sunday made no secret of his ambition, stating that despite missing the Chief Minister’s post by a whisker twice in the past, he was hopeful he would become the Chief Minister ‘with some luck’ on his side if the Congress wins the next Assembly polls, due in 2013.

The veteran Kuruba leader missed the chance when late J.H. Patel became Chief Minister after Deve Gowda was chosen for the PM post in 1996 and when the Congress and JD(S) firmed up an alliance and formed a government led by Dharam Singh in 2004. On both occasions, he had indirectly blamed JD(S) supremo H.D. Deve Gowda for ruining his chances of making it to the top post. In disgust, the former deputy chief minister had quit the party and formed his own outfit — AIPJD — before joining the Congress in 2006.

Turning 65 on Sunday, Siddaramaiah knows it is now or never and said: “I lost the opportunity of becoming Chief Minister twice because my own people betrayed me. However, I am confident the Congress will come to power in the next polls and if I am lucky, I will become Chief Minister, this time”.

Mr Siddaramaiah, who is bargaining hard with his party high command to project him as the Chief Ministerial candidate, ahead of the polls, and consolidating his vote bank among the backward classes, seemed to have turned more vocal about his ambitions. “I want to be the Chief Minister and draw up pro-people programmes and futuristic and long-term plans for the State” he declared.

He mocked at the BJP’s habit of foisting weak ‘Chief Ministers’ on Karnataka. “CM Jagadish Shettar lives in constant fear of losing his chair and is obeying the orders of former CM B.S. Yeddyurappa,” he quipped.

I will bid adieu after ’13 polls: Siddu
Former deputy chief minister and senior Congress leader Siddaramaiah has announced that the 2013 Assembly elections will be his last. The veteran Kuruba leader is one of the aspirants from the Congress for the CM’s post if the party bounces back to power.

“I have made up my mind to retire from electoral politics, as I will be 70 years old by the time the next elections are due in 2018. The present political and electoral system has left me disheartened,” declared Siddaramaiah who is also the Congress Legislature Party(CLP) leader, while announcing his future political plans on his 65th birthday on Sunday.

Predicting the fortunes of his own party and the ruling BJP in the next polls, Siddu said, “BJP cannot cross 50 seats in the coming elections. However, I strongly believe the Congress will win and secure a majority. In the last elections too, we had fared well but we lost several seats by a very narrow margin. This time, I am confident of sweeping the polls,” he asserted.