BENGALURU: AMID speculation over differences within the Congress and a possible fragmentation of the AHINDA leadership, former minister and senior Congress MLA Dr HC Mahadevappa on Wednesday sought to play down the controversy over separate Constitution Day celebrations in Mysuru, asserting that there was no conflict between the government and organisations organising the events.
Mahadevappa is Congress MLA from HD Kote.
Mahadevappa, who had earlier been reluctant to withdraw from a separate programme proposed under his leadership, welcomed the State Government’s decision to organise a large-scale Constitution Day celebrations in Mysuru on November 26. He also maintained that organisations should be free to conduct their own programmes to spread awareness about the Constitution.
But former chief minister and Congress Working Committee member Siddaramaiah’s silence over the issue is intriguing even as he had played a key role in the government organising the official Constitution Day on his home turf Mysuru under the leadership of his minister-son Dr Yathindra Siddaramaiah.
“There is no prestige issue between the government and organisations over Constitution Day celebrations. Both have the same objective. There is no need for a discussion on who is bigger or smaller,” Mahadevappa said.
Emphasising that the observance should go beyond a single day, he said, “Constitution Day should not be restricted to one day. There must be continuous efforts to create awareness among people about the ideals and values of the Constitution.”
He said he would be happy to attend any number of programmes to which he was invited, irrespective of whether they were organised by the government or by social organisations. He also recalled that, during his tenure as Social Welfare Minister, he had introduced the practice of reading the Preamble to the Constitution every day in educational institutions.
His clarification comes after ministers Dr Yathindra and Muniyappa, through state guarantees implementation monitoring committee chairman HM Revanna, made a second attempt to persuade him to join the government’s programme and avoid separate celebrations. The leaders had met Mahadevappa at his Dollars Colony residence in Bengaluru on Tuesday evening, but the possibility of parallel events had remained.
Meanwhile, Mahadevappa firmly rejected speculation about a rift in his friendship with Siddaramaiah.
He also dismissed suggestions that he was unhappy over not being accommodated in the Cabinet or was considering joining the JDS.
On the controversy surrounding the alleged sting operation targeting former chief minister Siddaramaiah,Mahadevappa said the truth should emerge and those responsible should be identified.
