Siddaramaiah accuses Zameer Khan of betrayal in Davanagere bypolls

Bengaluru: Former Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has expressed anger at former minister and close associate Zameer Ahmad Khan, alleging that he betrayed him during the Davanagere South by-election.

Siddaramaiah made the remarks when supporters of Zameer approached him at his residence in Bengaluru and urged him to ensure a cabinet berth for their leader. Responding sharply, Siddaramaiah asked the supporters whether they were aware that Zameer had worked against him during the Davanagere bypoll despite being regarded as one of his close associates.

A video of the exchange surfaced on Thursday and quickly went viral on social media amid ongoing protests by Zameer’s supporters demanding his inclusion in the Karnataka cabinet.

In the video, the supporters are seen attempting to explain Zameer’s actions and urging Siddaramaiah to overlook what they described as a mistake. However, Siddaramaiah appears visibly upset and walks away from the spot.

The development comes at a time when intense lobbying is underway for cabinet positions in the newly formed government. Former Speaker and senior Congress leader U.T. Khader was inducted as Health Minister, while Zameer’s exclusion from the first phase of cabinet expansion has been widely viewed as a setback for the Chamarajpet MLA.

Despite speculation about differences within the party, Zameer had earlier maintained that Siddaramaiah would complete a full five-year term as Chief Minister, a statement seen as significant amid discussions over power-sharing arrangements involving former Deputy Chief Minister and former Karnataka Congress President D.K. Shivakumar.

The roots of the dispute trace back to the Davanagere South by-election, where the Congress fielded Samarth Mallikarjun, grandson of veteran Congress leader late Shamanur Shivashankarappa. The decision reportedly faced opposition from sections of the Muslim community, with Zameer strongly advocating the candidature of a Muslim leader.

Samarth Mallikarjun’s father, former minister S.S. Mallikarjun, publicly rebuked Zameer at the time, stating that he should focus on his own constituency rather than interfere in Davanagere district's affairs.

The controversy intensified after a 3-minute-51-second audio clip was circulated on social media shortly before the swearing-in ceremony of Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar and his council of ministers. The clip, shared by social media accounts claiming links to Karnataka politics, was alleged to be related to the Davanagere South by-election.

The purported audio allegedly featured a conversation between Zameer Ahmad Khan and a Congress leader from Davanagere identified as Siraj. In the recording, a voice purportedly discusses voting patterns and advises supporters not to mobilise Muslim voters in favour of the Congress party’s official candidate.

The audio further allegedly suggests support for an Independent candidate and the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) instead of the Congress nominee.

However, Zameer Ahmad Khan dismissed the recording as fabricated and described it as part of a political conspiracy. Responding to the controversy earlier this week, he claimed that the audio clip was generated using Artificial Intelligence (AI) and circulated to malign his image.

Meanwhile, S.S. Mallikarjun and his son, Davanagere South MLA Samarth Mallikarjun, maintained that Zameer’s alleged anti-party activities during the campaign were an open secret. They have demanded that the audio clip be subjected to forensic examination to establish its authenticity.