Bengaluru, Sep 28: The internal bickering in the Mysuru Congress unit erupted on Monday, with former minister Tanvir Sait walking away from a programme when minister Yathindra Siddaramaiah arrived for the programme one hour late.
Congress leaders clash at event
The function was organised to honour the mahouts who had accompanied the elephants that will be participating in the forthcoming Dasara celebrations, and a breakfast with the mahouts was to start at 9 am.
When the minister did not arrive till 10 am, miffed Tanvir Sait left the venue. When the Mysuru DC tried to pacify him, Tanvir Sait bluntly said: "They should have some time sense. Not to make these poor people wait for a breakfast."
Meanwhile, one of the Yathindra followers, who was present at the venue, called up the minister and gave the phone to Tanvir Sait. However, Tanvir Sait was in a mood to reconcile and said: "We cannot make such people wait. I don't appreciate this. I have already left the venue, sir, and thank you for calling."
Long-running political rivalry
The difference between Tanvir Sait and the Siddaramaiah camp is very old, as both have been vying to control Mysuru city. During Zilla Panchayat or even the Mysuru City Corporation, both the camps are always at loggerheads. Siddaramaiah always tried to keep Tanvir Sait out of the ministry, but during his first tenure, during the second half of the term, he was forced to induct Tanvir Sait as Primary and Secondary Education Minister. Siddaramaiah always used Zameer Ahamed against Tanvir Sait, but could never dent his dominance over the community in the Mysuru region.
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Cabinet speculation and rivalry
Since Tanvir Sait is very close to D K Shivakumar, he was expected to be inducted into the cabinet. Zameer Ahamed cutting off from the Siddaramaiah camp was one of the reasons for this speculation. However, Zameer Ahamed used AICC General Secretary K C Venugopal to get inducted into the cabinet, leaving Tanvir Sait in the cold.
But the infighting between Tanvir Sait and Yathindra Siddaramaiah is continuing unabated, with the former minister leaving no stone unturned to keep the sitting minister under check.
