Bengaluru South MP and BJP national general secretary H.N. Ananth Kumar, who made an unsuccessful bid to get his protégé, Jagadish Shettar, installed as chief minister, has been sternly warned by the central leadership to amend
his ways and desist from attempts to encourage groupism in the state unit. He has been told that he is liable to face disciplinary action if he continues to engage in such acts.
Mr Kumar played more than a nominal role in trying to stop the chances of chief minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda making it to the post, which complicated the selection process of the new CM and damaged the image of the BJP being a party with a difference. Soon after the new chief minister was selected through a secret ballot, Mr Kumar went into a huddle with MLAs loyal to him, who later decided to boycott the swearing-in ceremony of the new CM. “Mr Kumar and the 40-odd MLAs of his group remained belligerent even after the selection of Mr Gowda, which irked central leaders,” sources said.
Mr Kumar, who is in charge of party affairs in Madhya Pradesh and the secretary of the BJP central parliamentary board, was reportedly told by party president Nitin Gadkari that a leader holding so many posts could not afford to indulge in such activity. “He was asked by the central leaders whether he would tolerate groupism and dissidence in states where he holds charge. The central leaders felt that it was unbecoming of a senior leader of his stature, who sits in the front bench in the Lok Sabha, to encourage dissidence,” the sources said.
Much to the discomfiture of Mr Kumar, the central leaders also told him that he would be kept under surveillance in future to make sure he did not indulge in more acts of this kind.
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Dalit MLAs lobby for berth
Age Correspondent
Bengaluru
Aug. 10: A section of dalit legislators in the ruling party met here on Wednesday as part of their strategy to mount pressure on party leaders for a berth in the cabinet during the second round of expansion. Speaking to reporters here, D.S. Veeraiah, senior leader and supporter B.S. Yeddyurappa, said, “We only plan to bring it to the notice that the untouchable sub-sect ‘Chalavadi’ has been kept out of power.”