BENGALURU: Former Deputy Chief Minister Dr G Parameshwara, who managed to meet Congress leader DK Shivakumar on Tuesday, said, “He looked depressed. I felt sorry for him.”Shivakumar, who was arrested on September 3 in a money-laundering case by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), has been in Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital in New Delhi.
“He said that his blood pressure was going out of control, and as I sat talking to him, he told a team of consulting doctors about discomfort in his chest. Health-wise, he looks quite bad. He is upset that after living like a king, they have shut him up,’’ Parameshwara said. He is the first politician, apart from Shivakumar’s brother MP DK Suresh, to meet him. Surprisingly, he succeeded where senior Congress leaders like AICC treasurer Ahmed Patel, former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, former Opposition leader Mallikarjun Kharge and KPCC President Dinesh Gundu Rao failed.
Was it the ED calling his daughter Aisshwarya for questioning that broke him? “She is a bold girl, I told her to face their questions boldly,” Shivakumar reportedly told Parameshwara. Shivakumar is sure that he will not be shut in forever, and is determined to come out soon. He knows the ED court won’t give bail, but his lawyers will try for bail again on Wednesday.
Parameshwara, Shivakumar’s friend of three decades, said he could do little other than hold his hand and console him, and assure him of help. Parameshwara met Congress interim President Sonia Gandhi for about 15 minutes on Tuesday afternoon and briefed her about plans to revive the party in the state.