Shivakumar wades into controversy by waving JD(S) flag

BENGALURU: Congress

leader D K Shivakumar has drawn flak from some of his party leaders for holding the JD(S) flag when he returned here from Delhi after getting bail in a money laundering case.

Shivakumar, arrested by the Enforcement Directorate, and in judicial custody at the Tihar Jail, returned on Saturday to a rousing welcome here, where besides Congress leaders, there were those from the JD(S) waiting to receive him. When he was being taken in a procession in a flowerbedecked vehicle, a JD(S) worker handed over a party flag to him which the Congress

leader received, waved it for a while and returned it to him.a video of the incident has since gone viral.

A video of former Chief

Minister and Congress leader Siddaramaiah criticising Shivakumar for the act, in a private conversation, is also now in wide circulation in social media. In the video, Siddaramaiah is heard saying that Lingayats, a prominent community of Karnataka seen backing the BJP, are now distancing themselves with Lingayat strongman and Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa, and the Vokkaligas, another dominant community, are disenchanted with JD(S) and H D Kumaraswamy. Justifying his act, Shivakumar said, "... wherever I go, people give me a number of flags including the Kannada flag and people from all walks of life come to meet me. Even now there are three JD(S) MLAS waiting to meet me. Can I tell them not to come?" Shivakumar insisted that holding flag was not a big deal as he has been "a born Congressman".