At his Mysuru home, Yathindra Siddaramaiah is in a hurry. Hours before his father, the Karnataka CM, was scheduled to file his nomination from the Chamundeshwari constituency, Yathindra was getting ready to accompany him to trip outside the city.
The trip was to Siddaramanahundi village which, as the name may give away, is Karnataka Chief Minster Siddaramaiah’s ancestral village. “It is a ritual for appa to visit the temple in our ancestral village before filing his nomination,” Yathindra told The Quint.
Rame Gowda, a farmer, sits nonchalantly in front of his house at Siddaramanahundi, as an eager crowd gathers around for Siddaramaiah’s arrival. Not many first-time visitors to this village know that the man chatting with farmers is the Chief Minister’s younger brother.
Siddaramaiah’s convoy drives directly to the village temple. There is no stopover at Rame Gowda’s house. But then again, he wasn’t expecting one either.
“We are now used to the fact that he is busy man. We meet him only once a year since he became Chief Minister, sometimes even that doesn’t happen,” says Rame Gowda, a farmer by profession.
Siddaramaiah is the third among six siblings. Two of his elder sisters and a brother passed away a few years ago. Two of his younger brothers, Rame and Sidde Gowda, work as farmers in Siddaramanahundi. Rame Gowda still lives in the house where all six siblings grew up.
‘People Don’t Believe That We Don’t Have Direct Access to Him’
Not far from the family’s ancestral home, Sidde Gowda, the youngest brother, is getting ready for a siesta at his house. Having spotted guests at the door, he steps out dressed in a white vest and boxers. “I’m sorry, I’m not dressed. I was in the field all morning and the heat unbearable this time as well,” he says.
Sidde Gowda says he wants to stay away from politics.
(Photo: Arun Dev/The Quint)
Sidde Gowda, like many other farmers in the region, is worried about the water scarcity problem. But contrary to popular opinion, he says he cannot simply call up his brother when he has a problem. Apart from the rare, quick meetings with his elder brother, he too has limited access to the Chief Minister, he reveals.
“People come to us often, asking us to talk to the Chief Minister on their behalf. EEe tell them that we have no direct access to elder brother, but they are not ready to believe us. Sometimes, the villagers help us by telling the visitors that we are telling the truth,” Sidde Gowda told The Quint.
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‘We are Better Off in Farms, Not in Politics’
Despite their big brother’s political career, the brothers say they’ve never considered entering the world of politics. In fact, they say they want to stay as far away from it as possible. “Even as children, we never thought of getting out of the village. I always wanted to farmer and I’m very happy about it,” says Rame Gowda.
It is not just the brothers, their children are not into active politics either. “When Rakesh (the CM’s elder son) used to be around, our children used to tag along with him for political rallies, but that’s about it. My son works in a bank and I want him to do well there,” Sidde Gowda says.
At the Sidde Gowda’s house, is a portrait of the Siddaramaiah’s elder son Rakesh – carefully positioned in between photographs of Siddaramaiah and his father. Rakesh, who was groomed to be a politician, passed away in 2016.
The brothers remember him as a firebrand who took after his father. “He was full of energy and used to run around to get things done. He would have made a good politician. His death was a shock to all us,” says Sidde Gowda.
But Yathindra is very different from Rakesh, the two say. “He is very soft spoken and very quiet. But he is a very intelligent man, after all he is a doctor,” said Rame Gowda. When asked about whether a soft-spoken person like Yathindra can survive in politics, Rame Gowda simply said: “He is Siddaramaiah’s son.”
‘Let People Talk, but Our Brother Will Win’
When asked to address the rumours about Siddaramaiah losing in his home constituency, Rame Gowda says: “He has seen tougher situations than this in his life and he has survived. He will win this election as well”.
“Look at the works he had done for the people of the state. Unlike the previous governments, he is not corrupt or has done anything wrong that people can complaint about,” he says. “He has always been someone who cared for people, especially the poor and they will vote him back to power, may it Varuna, Chamundeshwari or Badami”.
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