Bengaluru, 20 July

The Mysuru Sadhana Samavesha event in Mysuru held by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah was not a government programme, but was organised to sideline Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, Opposition Leader R Ashoka claimed. Congress party leaders are fighting on the streets, he quipped.

Speaking to reporters, he said the event exposed the internal rift within Congress. No one spoke in favour of Shivakumar, Ashoka said, claiming that the meeting was held to to humiliate Shivakumar.

“Shivakumar has now become a second-tier leader. It was not a government program; it was a ritual to finish off Shivakumar,” he said.

“The BJP does not need to topple this government; it will collapse due to Congress’s internal conflicts. Their disputes are now out in the open,” he added.

MLAs themselves have called Siddaramaiah a "lottery CM", Ashoka said. Siddaramaiah is neither a people’s leader nor an elected CM. Henceforth, Siddaramaiah should call himself a "lottery Chief Minister," Ashoka remarked.