MYSURU: Challenging the Congress, Housing Minister V Somanna, who is contesting from the Chamarajanagar and Varuna Assembly constituencies, told the Grand Old Party to announce that it would make a Lingayat the chief minister if voted to power.
Speaking to reporters during his campaign at Shivapura village in Chamarajanagar, he said the Congress is blaming the BJP for not treating (former) Lingayat leaders of the party -- Jagadish Shettar and Lakshman Savadi -- properly, forcing them to quit and join the Congress. “They are making such statements with political interest, but the Lingayats will never believe them.
If the Congress tries to blackmail Lingayats, it will be taught a lesson. It should stop its ‘use and throw’ technique. What happened to Veerendra Patil, Rajashekhar Murthy, and Nijalingappa,” he questioned. Responding to talks over announcing Somanna as the next chief minister, the Lingayat leader mentioned, “I feel happy to hear that and at the same time sad, as it can increase my enemy-base.”