Zameer and Siraj have dismissed the audio clip as fake. Zameer issued a statement saying the audio clip was created using AI tools to create confusion among the Congress ranks. He said he would file a police complaint over the clip.

Siraj alleged a conspiracy behind the clip, considering the timing of the audio. “A team is working to prevent Zameer from being appointed the deputy chief minister and minister,” he said. A new Cabinet led by D K Shivakumar will be sworn in on June 3, after Siddaramaiah resigned as chief minister.

The Davanagere South bypoll was mired in controversy after a section of Muslim leaders from the Congress, such as MLA Rizwan Arshad and MLC Saleem Ahmed, accused leaders of the community of trying to sabotage Congress prospects in the election, following a dispute over the choice of a candidate. Citing that Muslims constituted a third of the voters in the constituency, leaders close to Zameer had urged the party to pick a Muslim candidate for the segment.

As the high command decided to go with Samarth Mallikarjun, grandson of former MLA Shamanur Shivashankarappa and son of former minister S S Mallikarjun and Lok Sabha MP Prabha Mallikarjun, the Congress witnessed rebellion in the constituency.

Samarth won the April 9 bypoll by 5,708 votes, less than the 27,888-vote margin the party had in the 2023 Assembly polls. Samarth polled 69,578 votes, while the BJP’s Srinivas Dasakariyappa received 63,870 votes and the SDPI candidate 18,975 votes.

Soon after the bypoll, the Congress suspended MLC Abdul Jabbar over “anti-party” activities. Another MLC, Naseer Ahmed, was stripped of his Cabinet rank as political secretary to Siddaramaiah. Speculation also suggested that action would be taken against Zameer.