'Siddaramaiah hit the jackpot': BR Patil's new video goes viral amid Congress leadership row

Bengaluru: A video of Congress MLA B R Patil making critical remarks about Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has gone viral, adding fresh fuel to the ongoing discontent within the Karnataka Congress despite repeated denials by the party’s top leaders about any leadership crisis.

In the video, reportedly recorded during a conversation while sitting in KR Pet, Mandya, the Aland MLA is seen speaking on the phone, making multiple comments that could cause further discomfort to the party’s leadership.

“Siddaramaiah hit the jackpot. I was the one who first introduced him to Sonia Gandhi. His stars were aligned well, so he became the Chief Minister. I don’t have any godfather. I met Randeep Surjewala and explained everything to him. He patiently heard me and said, ‘Let’s see what happens,’” Patil is heard saying.

This video surfaced just hours after AICC General Secretary in-charge of Karnataka, Randeep Surjewala, told the media that there was no discussion on leadership change within the party. Surjewala had flown to Bengaluru to hold discussions with party MLAs to manage the internal unrest.

The emergence of this video comes shortly after an earlier leaked audio of Patil stirred controversy, in which he allegedly claimed that bribes were being demanded to obtain houses under a government housing scheme.

In recent days, legislators like Magadi MLA H C Balakrishna and Ramanagara MLA H A Iqbal Hussain — who are close to Deputy CM D K Shivakumar — have openly spoken in favour of a leadership change. This has kept speculation alive despite efforts by Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar to project unity.