Siddaramaiah sacks political secretary over Bengaluru stampede: Who is K Govindaraju?

Indian Express

13 hours ago

With the Congress government in Karnataka facing the heat following the stampede in Bengaluru on Wednesday, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah sacked his political secretary K Govindaraju on Friday. The close aide of the CM became the first Cabinet-rank official to be sacked in the aftermath of the stampede that occurred outside the Chinnaswamy stadium during the IPL victory celebrations of the Royal Challengers Bangalore, leaving 11 people dead.
Govindaraju, currently an MLC, conceived the idea of a victory parade and celebration at the Vidhana Soudha, the state legislature, despite the Bengaluru City Police denying permission for the event, according to multiple sources in the government and the police. 'He reportedly liaised between the state government, KSCA (Karnataka State Cricket Association) and RCB even though the police denied permission,' a source said, adding that the police, at a certain point, were kept in the dark about the communications happening between the KSCA and the state government. Sources in the Congress alleged that Govindaraju pushed the idea of a large-scale celebration as he aspired to contest the KSCA polls.
Labelled the de facto 'sports minister' by a section of state Congress leaders, Govindaraju is viewed as a 'troubleshooter who operates behind the scenes'. In the last two decades, he has always occupied important positions whenever the Congress is at the helm of affairs. He has been president of the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) Asia, the Basketball Federation of India, and the Karnataka Olympic Association.
Govindaraju has denied all the allegations and told the media on Friday that he was not involved with the RCB and 'never contacted by the KSCA'. Claiming that he was disturbed by the sequence of events, he told The Indian Express, 'It has happened over a minor issue and nothing big. I will speak to you next week.'
Hailing from a family of bureaucrats from Kolar, sources said Govindaraju had access to the corridors of power as his elder brother is an IAS officer promoted from the state services. A senior Congress leader credited Govindaraju's 'entreprising behaviour and never-say-no attitude' for his rise in the echelons of power. 'He first came into contact with state Minister K J George and then with (former CM) S M Krishna. He is seen as a man who caters to the needs of powerful politicians,' a leader said.
Govindaraju also had a stint in electoral politics when he made his Assembly poll debut from the Shivajinagar seat in 1999. But he lost the election. He continued to remain a part of the state power circles and was elected MLC in 2012. He also served as Siddaramaiah's parliamentary secretary between 2015 and 2018.
Seen in Congress circles as the party's 'fundraiser', Govindaraju found himself in the centre of a controversy in 2017 after Income Tax officials recovered a diary from him with details of payments worth Rs 600 crore allegedly made to senior Congress leaders.