Belagavi (Karnataka) [India], November 26 : Following the protest in Tumkur with demands for a Dalit Chief Minister in Karnataka, Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara declined to make any comments. Dalit organisations have demanded that Parameshwara be made Chief Minister.
Speaking to reporters, G Parameshwara said, "I don't want to speak anything related to CM, specifically related to the CM post and cabinet reshuffle issue. I have already spoken much."
Earlier on Tuesday, Pro-Dalit organisations held a protest in Tumkur.
Dalit organisation leader Chalavadi Shekhar urged the Congress high command to make G Parameshwara the Chief Minister.
Chalavadi Shekhar said, "We want to see G Parameshwara as the Chief Minister, so we are protesting in Tumkur. We are requesting the Congress high command to make G Parameshwara the CM. If G Parameshwara is not made the CM, we will gherao the home of Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge."
A protest was held in front of the Dr B R Ambedkar statue on Tuesday. The protest was led by Dalit leaders Ramaiah, Bande Kumar, and Bhanuprakash.
"Dr G. Parameshwar has brought the party to power as the KPCC president twice. The CM post has not been given to the Tumkur district so far. Therefore, the high command is being urged to make Dr. G Parameshwar the CM," a Dalit leader further said.
Earlier, G Parameshwara on Sunday implied that he is also in the Chief Ministerial race amid speculation about a change of leadership in the state.
It is no secret that demands for a CM from the Dalit community have surfaced multiple times within the Congress.
When asked about the repeated meetings of Congress leaders from the Dalit community, including him, and Karnataka Public Works Department (PWD) Minister Satish Jarkiholi, Parameshwara said, "Dalits have been asking for the CM post for a long time."
"Will it happen because we met?" he asked.
Parameshwara's remarks come in the backdrop of a dinner recently hosted by Jarkiholi for leaders from the Dalit community at his residence.
"We had dinner together at Satish Jarkiholi's (house). Is that wrong? We also talked about politics during the meeting. As ministers in the government, we discussed the works that need to be undertaken in the departments," he informed.
Parameshwara further stated that leaders from the Dalit community have met to discuss issues, including internal reservation among Schedule Castes (SCs). "We are all like-minded. The fight over internal reservation is over," he said, asking, "Should we not discuss our problems?"
"I have always been in the CM race. In 2013, I was the president of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC). We brought the Congress government to power then. I have never said that I brought the government to power alone. Everyone worked together. People voted and made the party win. I was defeated at that time. I don't know what would have happened if I had won. They give the KPCC president a chance. That is not followed in some cases," Parameshwara said.
The senior Congress leader further wrote off reports of "problems" within the party over the issue of possible power change, and said that there was no problem in the party or the (state) government. He clarified that no decisions are made in the party without the high command's go-ahead.
When asked about any word from the high command on a possible change in leadership, Parameshwara said it was up to the Congress high command to suggest changes, but that time has not come yet.
"Observers from the AICC had come during the selection of the Chief Ministers. It happened before them in the CLP (Congress Legislature Party) meeting. Siddaramaiah did not say that he would be the CM for two and a half years. It is up to the high command to make a change in the middle. When the occasion arises, the high command will do it. They replaced Bangarappa with Veerappa Moily. I don't think that time has come now," he asserted.
Parameshwara said that Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, who hails from Karnataka, will decide on a leadership change if required. He said that any confusion will be resolved after discussions among top party leaders, including Rahul Gandhi.