A section of Congress leaders, including office-bearers of the party’s wings, held a meeting here on Tuesday and demanded that the former Minister B. Shivaram resign as chairman of the District Congress Committee. They alleged that the party had suffered defeats under his leadership. They urged the party leadership to field a strong candidate in the Lok Sabha elections and not Mr. Shivaram. The meeting was attended by office-bearers, including C.V. Rajappa, head of the Panchayat Raj wing of the DCC; D.C. Sannaswamy, secretary of the SC, ST wing, and Sheshe Gowda, leader of the backward classes wing.
Addressing presspersons after the meeting, Mr. Rajappa said a campaign, ‘Shivaram hatao, Congress bachao’ had been launched in the district. “The immediate objective is to defeat the JD(S) in Hassan in the general elections. For that we have to strengthen the party base. The party can be strengthened only by replacing Mr. Shivaram with an efficient leader as head of the party’s district unit,” he said.
Despite being a four-time MLA and a Minister, he had not been able to strengthen the party in the district because of his dictatorial style of functioning, he alleged. “Now he is trying to get the ticket to contest the Lok Sabha elections. The party should not consider him,” Mr. Rajappa added.
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Mr. Sannaswamy said the Congress had given Mr. Shivaram everything in politics. “What has he given to the party,” he asked.
He also alleged that Mr. Shivaram was responsible for the Congress denying a ministerial berth to A. Manju, Congress MLA for Araklgud.