Some want to ‘finish’ me off politically: Karnataka CM

bengaluru — Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy on Sunday said a section of people wanted to ‘finish him off politically’ by defeating his son Nikhil Kumaraswamy in the Mandya Lok Sabha constituency.

Reflecting the widening cracks in the ruling coalition, Kumaraswamy said he was relying “only on the JD(S) MLAs, MLCs and the sitting member of parliament L R Shivarame Gowda (in Mandya).”

Speaking to reporters in Udupi, the chief minister said he did not depend on the alliance partner, Congress in Mandya.

“Some Congress leaders are working and some are not working (in Mandya), but I am not upset with that.

There is a section out to finish me off by defeating Nikhil Kumaraswamy. However, they don’t have the support of the local people there,” Kumaraswamy alleged.

He was responsing to a query about the squabbling among coalition partners — JDS and Congress. “I have eight MLAs (in Mandya Lok Sabha constituency), three MLCs and the sitting Lok Sabha member (L R Shivarame Gowda) are there.. They will work... I won’t blame anybody.”

Noting that the situation was ‘adverse’ for JDS in Mandya while there was reported discord among coalition partners in Tumakuru and Hassan also, he however said, “We will not let down the candidates of our alliance partner.”

Three days ago, the JD(S) workers had openly rebelled against the Congress candidate for Mysore constituency, C H Vijayashankar and shouted pro-BJP slogans in the presence of Higher Education Minister and JD(S) MLA G T Deve Gowda. —

Some Congress leaders are working and some are not working (in Mandya), but I am not upset with that

H D Kumaraswamy, Karnataka Chief Minister