Ramalinga resigns as K’taka minister citing ‘humiliation’

BENGALURU: The two-day-old DK Shivakumar regime in mysore received its number one jar on fri after senior Congress leader R Ramalinga Reddy resigned from the cabinet on live television over portfolio allocation, alleging that he was promised a particular department but was later denied the ministry.The announcement by the eight-time lawmaker from Bengaluru and eight-time minister came less than 24 hours after portfolios were announced and two days after Reddy took oath along with 13 others in the new government after the resignation of former chief minister Siddaramaiah.Reddy – currently the minister of major and medium irrigation department – alleged that he was promised the Bengaluru development department, which was allotted to another senior Congress leader, Krishna Byre Gowda.In a press conference, Reddy said he had not resigned from the Congress, adding that he will continue to remain a party member and legislator.“I have been humiliated time and again, cannot take it anymore,” Reddy said. The 72-year-old also referred to his long association with the party, saying he had spent 53 years in the Congress and intended to continue in its ranks. “I am not angry, only disappointed,” he said.“Twice they called me and promised to give me that (Bengaluru Development) portfolio, but in the end it went to someone else. That is why I feel hurt. Therefore, today I am resigning,” Reddy told reporters.Reddy said he had never lobbied for ministerial office or sought any specific department from the party leadership. “I never asked Siddaramaiah for the Bengaluru Development portfolio. He voluntarily offered it,” Reddy said, recounting events after the formation of the previous Congress government between 2013 and 2018. He also served as transport minister under Siddaramaiah from May 2023 to May 2026.Reddy said he met Shivakumar before the latter took oath as CM but did not raise any demand for ministership or a portfolio. “I never asked him to make me a minister. I never asked Siddaramaiah to include me in the cabinet. I never approached the high command,” he said.Asked whether he would reconsider his decision if persuaded by the party leadership or offered the portfolio he wanted, Reddy replied with a firm “no”.“I am still in the Congress party; I have not resigned from the party. I have been in the Congress party for the past 53 years. I have handled several responsibilities within the party.I have served as a minister in the cabinets of former Chief Ministers M. Veerappa Moily and SM Krishna, among others. I have never asked anyone to give me a ministerial position,” he added.Shivakumar sought to play down concerns and indicated that the issue will be resolved.“Nothing to worry about. He is a great friend. We are the closest friends among the Cabinet. We will sort out the problem,” Shivakumar said.“Ramalinga Reddy is my colleague and our senior leader. He said that he cannot go to the village and work. He said that I should give him some other ministerial post. I will talk to Ramalinga Reddy and make everything right,” the CM added.Reddy said he will not personally hand over his resignation to the chief minister but send it through his personal secretary to the chief minister’s office (CMO).“My thanks to you and the Congress party for giving me a ministerial position in your cabinet. Since it is not possible for me to function against my conscience, I am submitting my resignation from the ministerial post. I request that my resignation be accepted. I will continue as an MLA and as a worker of the Congress party,” read the resignation letter.State home minister Priyank Kharge underlined Reddy’s importance to both the party and the state. “He is very important for the party. He is very important for the state. He has won elections eight times. We need his experience,” he said.Congress state president B K Hariprasad said he will speak to him and resolve the issue. “Such things keep happening in politics. There is no problem. But he will talk to us; he is not going to do anything against the Congress party,” he said.Byre Gowda didn’t respond to the calls for a comment.The development comes just months ahead of scheduled elections for the Greater Bengaluru Authority, the responsibility of coordinating the local election rests with the city in-charge minister.Reddy’s claim to city governance traces back to 2002–2004 under S.M. Krishna, when he held the Bangalore City Development charge alongside Food & Civil Supplies. However, the portfolio lacked today’s centralized power. Krishna personally steered the urban blueprint via the Bangalore Agenda Task Force, leaving Reddy with localized administration rather than master planning.Reddy remains one of the Congress party’s most influential leaders in Bengaluru and has long been a prominent figure in the city’s political and organisational affairs.Reacting to the escalating friction within the ruling dispensation, Leader of the Opposition R. Ashoka took a sharp dig at the Congress party’s stability, pointing to the open rebellion and subsequent ministerial resignations over portfolio allocation.“Kannadigas may one day wake up to a morning without the sun, but not a day without Congress infighting in Karnataka,” Ashoka said, mocking the persistent internal conflicts.Highlighting the repeated intervention of the Congress high command to douse local fires, the BJP leader added that with two years still remaining in the government led by Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, senior central leaders including Rahul Gandhi, K.C. Venugopal, and Randeep Singh Surjewala “might as well rent a permanent office, or better still, buy a house in Bengaluru.”