Mysuru: MLC A.H. Vishwanath has alleged that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah habitually organises conventions like the ‘Sadhana Samavesha’ whenever he finds himself in  political trouble.

Addressing a press conference at Jaladarshini Guest House yesterday, Vishwanath claimed that the CM is hosting the convention in his home district of Mysuru as a mere display of strength amid his ongoing power tussle with Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar.

Accusing Siddaramaiah of blatant hypocrisy for calling Congress leader Rahul Gandhi a ‘Nyaya Yodha’ (Warrior of Justice), Vishwanath alleged that the CM was falsely projecting himself as a champion of the backward classes.

He reminded Siddaramaiah that the ‘AHINDA’ (an acronym for Minorities, Backward Classes, and Dalits) movement was established by senior advocate C.S. Dwarakanath and former Union Minister R.L. Jalappa, not him. He further charged the CM with replacing Jalappa’s photo with his own at a recent event in Kolar.

Vishwanath claimed that the CM does not even know the names of marginalised communities beyond a few, such as Kuruba, Kumbara and Uppara, and lacks a genuine connection with lower strata communities.

Alleging that the ongoing ‘Sadhana Samavesha’ is misleading the public, he said more than 2,500 Government schools have shut down under Siddaramaiah’s tenure, and over one lakh elected representatives have been deprived of power due to the prolonged delay in conducting local body elections across the State.