Siddaramaiah watch controversy: High command to wait, watch

Bengaluru: While Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s rivals in the Karnataka Congress  couldn’t be happier over the wrist watch controversy he finds himself in, party leaders in New Delhi have reportedly decided to “wait and watch”  how it plays out.

According to sources, Mr Siddaramaiah has pleaded his case with several senior leaders in New Delhi, and they have assured him that “nothing will happen. But he is under  watch. Party  leaders are waiting to see how opposition parties like the Bharatiya Janata Party take the issue forward. Sometimes the Congress has acted swiftly and sometimes it has taken its own time in such matters,”  the sources said.

“In the case of  Pawan Kumar Bhansal and Ashwini Kumar, who were Union ministers during the United Progressive Alliance  regime, the party acted swiftly,  but it took its own sweet time to give marching orders to then Maharashtra chief minister, Ashok Chavan. The party takes every case individually. It depends on how the situation shapes up,” said a Congress leader. A senior leader from New Delhi also noted that Mr Siddaramaiah was already finding the going tough owing to the party's  “not so good” performance  in the  just concluded Zilla Panchayat and Taluk Panchyat elections.