Shivakumar-Siddaramaiah bonhomie on display at private function

Bengaluru: Karnataka Congress President D.K. Shivakumar and Opposition leader Siddaramaiah, who are vying for the post of chief minister if Congress voted to power, have passed on a message of unity to party workers.

In a rare gesture at a private function, both leaders showed affection to each other and posed for photographs on Saturday.

The leaders posed for photos by putting their arms around each other. The general perception is that they are not on good terms.

Hitting out at Congress, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai stated on Saturday, "Shivakumar does not know how they have finished off Siddaramaiah. In the previous election, they finished him politically in the Chamundeshwari constituency and this time it will happen in the Varuna constituency. The people are aware of it."

Recently, a video showing Siddaramaiah giving a rude reply to Shivakumar at the party headquarters appeared in social media and showed everything was not alright between the two. The gesture of the two leaders is intended to pass on a message of goodwill and harmony between the two leaders.

Rahul Gandhi during his recent visit to Karnataka had stressed that what makes him happy was the unity shown by the party leaders in Karnataka.

However, sources state that knives are out to finish off each other and eliminate the competition for the post of chief minister, if Congress is voted to power.