Disappointed by the denial of a ministerial berth to their leader Ajay Singh, MLA of Jewargi and son of former Chief Minister late N. Dharam Singh, in the cabinet of H.D. Kumaraswamy-led Congress-Janata Dal (Secular) government, hundreds of party workers took to streets at Jewargi, Yadrami and Sonna Cross in Jewargi constituency on Wednesday.
A group of Mr. Singh’s supporters blocked the Bidar-Srirangapatna National Highway and burnt tyres, disrupting the traffic flow for a couple of hours. Other groups staged a demonstration at Yedrami and Sonna Cross. The activists raised slogans against Congress and Janata Dal (Secular) leader holding them responsible for the denial of a ministerial berth to their leader.
Some of the office-bearers of the district Youth Congress also released a press note to register their protest and demanded that Mr. Singh be given an appropriate post till he is accommodated in the Cabinet in the subsequent expansion.
Mr. Singh’s followers alleged that the some of the party leaders were ‘destroying’ the party ahead of Lok Sabha elections by sidelining leaders who worked hard.
“It is a great injustice. Dharam Singh had dedicated his whole life for the party. His son Ajay Singh is following in his father’s footsteps. By sidelining and suppressing sincere leaders such as Ajay Singh and M.B. Patil, the leaders are digging a grave for the party. It would prove to be a fatal move ahead of the crucial 2019 Lok Sabha elections,” Bhimanagowda Paragonda, a member of the district Youth Congress, told The Hindu.
It is learnt that Mr. Singh had left no stone unturned to get into the Cabinet. He lobbied hard at the top level in the party apparatus and fielded civil society organisations and his fans for mounting pressure on the leadership by taking to the streets. As per Mr. Singh’s close associates, the names of Mr. Singh and Priyank Kharge, son of Congress Leader in Lok Sabha M. Mallikarjun Kharge, were on the list till a day before. However, only the the latter managed to make it to the final list.
As the news of Mr. Priyank Kharge taking oath as a Minister began to be telecast, his supporters celebrated by bursting crackers at SVP Circle in Kalaburagi.