Siddaramaiah an influential backward class leader, party making use of his leadership: DyCM DKShi
New Delhi: Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar on Monday reaffirmed Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s stature as a prominent leader of the backward classes, stating that the Congress party is actively utilising his leadership at both state and national levels.
“Siddaramaiah is an influential leader of the backward classes. The party is using his leadership effectively,” Shivakumar said. He added that a national-level meeting of backward class leaders would be held in Bengaluru on July 15, and the event would be chaired by Siddaramaiah.
“Though he is not formally the head of the committee, he will preside over the meeting due to his seniority and significant role in mobilising the backward classes for the party,” he said.
When asked about political meetings in the national capital, Shivakumar confirmed that on July 10, he, CM Siddaramaiah, and AICC General Secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala would meet to discuss internal party matters.
However, he dismissed speculation that the meeting was related to appointing Siddaramaiah as chairman of the party's OBC committee. “The meeting will focus on party organization, not on any specific appointment,” he clarified.
Responding to questions about a possible change in leadership in Karnataka, the Deputy CM firmly stated: “The Chief Minister’s post is not vacant. This is not the right time to discuss such matters.”
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8 dead, dozens wounded in Russian strike on Ukraine's Odesa port
Kyiv (AP): Eight people were killed and 27 wounded in a Russian missile strike on port infrastructure in Odesa, southern Ukraine, late on Friday, Ukraine's Emergency Service said on Saturday morning.
Some of the wounded were on a bus at the epicentre of the overnight strike, the service said in a Telegram post. Trucks caught fire in the parking lot, and cars were also damaged.
The port was struck with ballistic missiles, said Oleh Kiper, the head of the Odesa region.
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Elsewhere, Ukrainian forces hit a Russian warship and other facilities with drones, Ukraine's General Staff said in a statement on Saturday.
The nighttime attack on Friday hit the Russian warship “Okhotnik,” according to the statement posted to the Telegram messaging app.
The ship was patrolling in the Caspian Sea near an oil and gas production platform. The extent of the damage is still being clarified, the statement added.
A drilling platform at the Filanovsky oil and gas field in the Caspian Sea was also hit. The facility is operated by Russian oil giant Lukoil. Ukrainian drones also struck a radar system in the Krasnosilske area of Crimea, which Russia illegally annexed from Ukraine in 2014.
