Mandya: Opposition leader Siddaramaiah’s son, Yathindra Siddaramaiah, stated on Saturday that he will not contest in the upcoming assembly elections.
Yathindra, Congress MLA from Varuna constituency, had represented the same constituency in the 2018 assembly elections. But, this time Siddaramaiah is contesting from Varuna constituency and there was curiosity on which seat Yathindra would contest.
“I won’t contest from any constituencies. I have started campaigning for my father Siddaramaiah since January. The Varuna constituency does not belong to any individual. I have not sacrificed my seat for my father. The voters own the constituency,” he explained.
This is the last election of my father and people of Varuna constituency wanted him to contest, he said.
Yathindra had won with a margin of more than 45,000 votes from Varuna constituency. He has earned a good name for himself in the constituency for being polite and reciprocal. Yathindra is a doctor by profession.
Sources explained that, since Siddaramaiah will be busy with campaigning across the state, his son had taken charge of ensuring his victory from Varuna constituency.
Siddaramaiah is the contender for chief minister’s post and Congress insiders explain that his own party leaders, who were sidelined during his tenure, are waiting to take revenge on him by ensuring his defeat in the elections.
The sources say that Siddaramaiah ensured the defeat of G. Parameshwara from Koratagere constituency to eliminate him from the race for the post of chief minister in 2018. Similarly, Siddaramaiah had taken a tough stand on state party President D.K. Shivakumar and did not include him in the cabinet for a long time. Presently, he is vying with him for the post of chief minister. Considering various factors, Siddaramaiah’s team is taking no chances and selecting the safe seat for him. However, political circles say that anything can happen in Varuna constituency.
