BENGALURU: Former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is planning to revive the AHINDA (Minorities, Backward Classes and Dalits) platform with a new team, including his son, Minister Dr Yathindra Siddaramaiah.
The OBC rally to be held in Bengaluru on September 6 is likely to serve as a platform to signal the revival of the AHINDA movement and the sidelining of some of Siddaramaiah’s former supporters, including PWD Minister Satish Jarkiholi, Dr HC Mahadevappa and Zameer Ahmed Khan. The event is not named after AHINDA as it is being organised by the OBC leadership, especially Kuruba leaders from which Siddaramaiah hails from.
Meanwhile, Jarkiholi said that Congress is synonymous with AHINDA and missing out on a specific convention is not an issue of factionalism. It’s alleged that Siddaramaiah did not back Jarkiholi to become the KPCC chief which went to Ediga leader BK Hariprasad.
The elevation of Yathindra as minister and floor leader in the Upper House has resulted in a cold war within the Siddaramaiah’s old AHINDA camp who had joined Congress like him from the JDS, observed political analysts. Evidently, Zameer made use of the Kerala assembly polls and emerged strong to be part of the cabinet despite charges of anti-party activities during Davanagere South bypoll campaign and opposition, allegedly, by Siddarmaiah, said a political analyst.
Siddaramaiah is likely to invite Deputy Chief Minister Dr G Parameshwara to the OBC rally to project him as a prominent Dalit face of the government and the refurbished AHINDA campaign, sources said.
Dr Yathindra is trying to patch up the relationship as he intervened when Mahadevappa, K Venktesh and Tanvir Sait were holding a meeting in Mysuru recently. On Friday he also met Jarkiholi and tried to pacify, according sources. In the past, Yathindra had said that Jarkiholi will be the ideological heir of his father.
Now Yathindra is eager to take his father’s mantle by taking along the leaders who wants to patch up with Siddaramaiah who has sway over Kurubas, the third largest electoral population in the state, sources said.
