NEW DELHI: Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy had on Saturday said he was "not happy" as Karnataka chief minister and was swallowing pain like Lord Shiva who drank poison, indicating a strain in ties with the Congress.


"You are all happy that your elder or younger brother has become the chief minister, but I am not happy," he said at a function organised to felicitate him. "I am swallowing the pain like Vishakantha (Lord Shiva who drank poison to save the world)," he said.

Kumaraswamy later broke down in tears saying it was not the time for celebration.

There were reports that the JDS leader was not happy with his party's alliance with the Congress. A Karnataka Congress leader even told PTI that there are some Congress leaders who are tormenting Kumaraswamy.

Union Minister Arun Jaitley had also lashed out at  Kumaraswamy for his emotional outburst on Monday and termed him as a "tragedy king" and the JDS-Congress alliance as opportunist.

Reacting to this entire episode, Kumaraswamy on Tuesday said his speech at the meeting of party cadres was misinterpreted by the media.

"I was speaking at my family programme. I have shared my pain with family members. I have not criticised Congress leaders. While talking emotionally, it is natural that tears flow. More than a CM, I am an ordinary person with emotions," he told reporters in New Delhi.

"I'm an emotional person, but it is not my helplessness. Did I shed tears at a government programme? As chief minister I have worked towards implementing programmes strongly," he said.

He said he didn't mention anything about the Congress.

"I spoke for an hour on that day. Nowhere I talked anything about the Congress creating problems. I have told media friends that despite difficulty I have taken the strong step of loan waiver and have implemented programmes, but somewhere I'm not getting encouragement for my good work.

Kumaraswamy has been on a bumpy road since he became a chief minister on May 23, heading the coalition government, confronting wranglings over portfolio allocation and presentation of the budget.

Recently, Siddaramaiah, who is also the head of the Congress-JD(S) coordination committee, in a letter to Kumaraswamy, had pressed for withdrawing the hike on petrol and diesel prices and reduction in the supply of rice under the 'Anna Bhagya' scheme meant for the poor.

(With PTI inputs)