Keep off Ballari, Congress tells minister Ramesh Jarkiholi

Ballari: Fearing that the running feud between Ministers Ramesh Jarkiholi and D K Shivakumar could mar the party’s chances in the Ballari Lok Sabha bypoll, the Congress has reportedly asked the  former to stay away from the constituency. 

Mr Jarkiholi,who was in charge of  Kudligi, one of the eight assembly segments of the parliamentary constituency, is said to have been given the marching orders as the party high command doesn't want the  BJP to gain from his differences with Mr Shivakumar, who is the district in- charge Minister.  

Now local leaders are in charge Kudligi, according to party sources. But no Congress leader was ready to confirm that Mr Jarkiholi  had been told to distance himself from the constituency.

Mr Jarkiholi, who was last seen in Kudligi on October 21, holding meetings with local leaders, has not been campaigning in the constituency since.

During his last visit, he had lashed out at Mr Shivakumar for “ showing off,” and asked him to “mind his business,” objecting to  his recent remarks on the Siddaramaiah government’s support for a separate  religion status for Lingayats. 

He had also refused to campaign alongside Mr Shivakumar in the district. While  admitting that there were differences between Mr Shivakumar and Mr Ramesh Jarkiholi, KPCC president, Dinesh Gundurao had promised to resolve them in a party forum. But it appears the party has taken the easy way out by keeping the two warring ministers apart for the duration of the campaigning for the November 3 bypoll.